


The Misconceptions of you, me, and Everything in Between

by jjongbluemoon



Category: SHINee
Genre: Bakery AU, M/M, and has only just recently come out of the closet, and jinki is kibum's half brother, and minho is the childhood friend, jonghyun is an accountant, kibum is the pretty boy who works at the bakery and jonghyun pretty much falls for him immediately, taemin is his openly gay coworker who helps him
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-07-02
Updated: 2018-12-04
Packaged: 2019-06-01 07:57:19
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 9
Words: 19,553
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15138623
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/jjongbluemoon/pseuds/jjongbluemoon
Summary: Kim Jonghyun, a boring everyday man working in accountancy, stumbles into a new bakery and instantly becomes smitten with the young man behind the counter. Kim Kibum is beautiful, artistic, and interesting, everything Jonghyun thinks he is not. However, Jonghyun's self-esteem only begins to get worse when an old flame walks into the picture and he's forced to realise that everyone has their own baggage to claim.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Hello there, if you're familiar with my previous work you will know that I've been using fiction as a coping mechanism for my own depression and grief over jonghyun, and this is no different. So, if reading about him is too much for you, please do not force yourself to. However, if you are like me and you find that reading/writing about him helps, then i hope you enjoy this story. Updates will be frequent.
> 
> i won't be posting any other author's notes after this so if you have any questions, just leave them in the comments - i promise i reply to every single one.
> 
> also, don't be afraid to let me know what you think of the fanfic, but please be kind in your criticisms.
> 
> Thank you if you decide to continue reading! I hope you enjoy :)

The bakery itself was inexplicably charming yet deceivingly average, with white washed walls and a chocolate brown striped awning that dripped the remnants of the morning’s rainfall. A few pastel blue tables littered the outside, situated for customers who wanted to eat al fresco. The door, hidden away behind an alcove, was a dark chestnut wood and beside it was a large bay window with the bakery’s name stencilled across in aesthetically pleasing handwriting.  _KiKi’s Bakery_ , it said.

Kim Jonghyun had never been one for visiting these kinds of places. He preferred to eat fast food, greasy burgers and even greasier French fries, with a combo shake. Enough to fill him up and feel guilty, and enough to push him to visit the gym at the end of the day to burn it all off. His ex-girlfriend, however, had been fond of cute little places like the bakery, always finding a new café or coffee shop to drag him along to on his day off.

But now those days were over, and had been for a while, and for the first time he had found himself pulled to this bakery. The smell of buttery pastry and freshly baked bread wafted from the small open window above the chestnut door and Jonghyun felt his stomach grumble. He looked across the road for a brief second. The queue from McDonalds was out the door for a lunch rush but the bakery seemed quiet and easy. For once, Jonghyun forwent his usual Big Mac and large fries for a fresh cheese and ham roll.

The inside of the bakery was even less intriguing on the inside. The walls were painted a soft yellow and the ceiling a pristine shade of white. The floors were a similar shade of wood to the door. Along the main wall was a small refrigerator that housed freshly baked rolls in brown paper bags, their names scrawled in flawless English, and opposite that were two glass cabinets showcasing colourful cakes and pastries that had caught Jonghyun’s eye immediately.

He wandered over to the fridge and pulled up a random brown paper bag and frowned at the English.  _What the hell_?

“Can I help you?” A voice asked from behind and Jonghyun whirled around instantly, the bun he had been holding flew from his hand and hit the glass case with a soft thump. Behind the glass case was the prettiest boy Jonghyun had ever laid his eyes on. He had short, cropped dark brown hair that was coiffed professionally and his eyes were slanted and sharp. He had a shaved eyebrow that was raised quizzically and his heart shaped mouth was pressed into a tight line, as if he were holding back a smile.

“You’re beautiful,” Jonghyun blurted out on a whisper and then immediately back tracked. “I mean… This place… It’s beautiful.”

The boy blushed at Jonghyun’s compliment and smiled. “Thank you, my brother and I are rather proud…” He trailed off for a minute, those sharp eyes scanning over Jonghyun’s body briefly before offering a hand over the glass case. “Do you want that sandwich?”

Jonghyun fumbled with his words for a minute, glancing at the boy’s beautifully slender hand (he was sure not even his ex-girlfriend had hands that pretty) to the floor where he had dropped his sandwich. “Oh, yeah,” he replied, bending down and snatching it up. “Ah, sorry, my English isn’t great... What does that say?”

“It’s egg salad,” the boy replied with a polite smile. His eyes flickered from the sandwich to the cash register. “Do you still want it?”

Jonghyun wasn’t a big fan of eggs to be honest, but the boy was so pretty he could sell him anything. “Yeah, sure.”

The boy’s face lit up and he turned to the side and Jonghyun took a second to appreciate that button nose with a high bridge and his model-like cheekbones. He really was quite beautiful, Jonghyun had meant it earlier. “That’ll be 3,700 won.”

Jonghyun handed the money over; pleased it was cheaper than his usual lunch at McDonalds. “Do you get a lot of customers?” He asked.

The boy hummed as he punched in the numbers and the cash drawer pinged open. He inserted the notes in the correct slots and slammed it closed. “We’re usually busy later on in the day. You came in early.”

“Oh,” Jonghyun replied as he was handed back the sandwich. “Thanks.”

“Thank you, have a nice day!” The boy said, waving at him as he walked out of the door. He hadn’t heard the jingle of the bell over the door when he had entered but it echoed through his mind as he left.

* * *

The next day, Jonghyun found himself in front of the bakery again, but this time it was early morning and  _KiKi’s Bakery_  had just opened. He could see through the window two men filtering through the shop, putting fresh baked goods out for sale. One of them had been that beautiful boy from before but the other was someone Jonghyun hadn’t seen before. The boy had mentioned a brother… perhaps this was him?

Jonghyun took a deep breath before pushing himself through the entrance. The two boys looked up and smiled identically as Jonghyun entered. He heard that jingle from above this time, ringing gently in his ear.

“Good morning!” The boy from yesterday greeted and Jonghyun deflated. He had hoped the boy would’ve remembered him but perhaps he had been wrong.

“Morning,” Jonghyun replied with a forced smile.

“Kibum-ah, don’t forget to take the bread rolls out after twenty minutes,” the other boy behind the glass counter said. His hair was a similar shade of brunet but fluffier and his nose was less perky but still cute all the same, to Jonghyun at least.

“Yes, hyung…” The beautiful boy sighed heavily as he pulled out an empty try to fill with freshly made eclairs. As he placed the filled tray back into the case his eyes met Jonghyun’s and he smiled. “Do you need some help?”

“I’m just trying to figure out what to have for breakfast…” Jonghyun rummaged through the selection with ease. Most of the pastries were sweet but there were a few savoury options he had never heard of before. His eyes wandered and stuck to the cheese tart that was calling his name with her glistening, golden top. “I’ll have one of these, please.”

Kibum walked over to the side of the cabinet and swung the door open. “Are you the guy who came in yesterday?” He then asked and Jonghyun gasped audibly. He did remember him after all!

“Yes, that was me,” Jonghyun replied with a proud smile.

“The one who couldn’t read English,” Kibum mentioned and Jonghyun sighed. “I’m not judging you! I just thought it was cute how you needed help…”

Jonghyun scratched at his mousy brunet hair sheepishly and looked at his perfectly polished black shoes. “What would you recommend?”

Kibum paused midway through punching the numbers on the cash register, cheese tart on a piece of grease proof paper. “I’m sorry?”

“For lunch, what would you recommend?”

“You’re coming back for lunch?” Kibum asked, blinking. “I er… Well… I think the tuna melt panini is delicious. We toast it for you on site so it’s fresh and warm and gooey and so yummy.” Kibum trailed off with a wistful smile before returning back to his work. “It’s our best seller next to the New York style deli sandwich.”

“Will you save me one when you make it… The panini I mean,” Jonghyun asked hopefully. Kibum considered it for a second before nodding his head.

“Just give me your name… I think Jinki-hyung will let me off just this one. Right, hyung?” He called to the back of the kitchen.

“You better not be giving out free samples again!” Jinki called back from behind a mixer.

“See, he doesn’t mind,” Kibum replied with a devilish smile. “So, all together that is 1,900 won.”

Jonghyun once again handed the money over with a smile, placing it in the little black tray. Kibum took the tray back and quickly processed the payment. He then placed the small amount of change back onto the tray and slid it over to Jonghyun. “You know, your food is rather delicious,” Jonghyun then said suddenly.

Kibum smiled brightly. “Thank you so much!” And handed over the wrapped up tart. “Enjoy your breakfast!”

Jonghyun was sure he wouldn’t get that smile out of his head, no matter how hard he tried.

* * *

“So, this place you’ve been going to…” Taemin started, leaning up against Jonghyun’s desk. Taemin had been a temp to cover someone’s maternity leave but ended up being taken on full time when he caused a 40% increase in the company’s stocks. He always walked around with a clean white mug with some form of liquid in it, sometimes it was coffee, sometimes tea, and if he was on a health kick in January, it would be green tea. “Is it any good?”

Jonghyun looked up from his screen and blinked at Taemin. “Um… You mean  _KiKi’s_?”

“It sounds like the name of a gay club,” Taemin snorted as he sipped on his beverage of choice – today it was milk tea. “But yeah, that place.”

“It’s delicious. Try some,” Jonghyun offered, sliding over the last piece of his cheese tart. He was a little sad to see it go as the filling had been tart and creamy and the glaze on top had been sweet with honey and the pastry was crumbly but not so much that it made a mess. Taemin popped the piece in his mouth and chewed. His eyes widened dramatically.

“Holy hell, I don’t know what I want in my mouth more, that cheese tart or Taecyeon-hyung’s dick.”

Jonghyun choked on his coffee. Taemin was the first person he met who was openly and loudly proud of how gay he was. Jonghyun envied him considerably. He had discovered he was gay when he was fifteen but due to family pressures he kept himself locked away in the closet, chained and unbreakable. For every girlfriend he had, they had a brother or a best friend who was ten times more attractive in Jonghyun’s eyes and Kibum, the cute baker, was by far the best looking man he had seen in his life. “Taemin, keep it down.”

“Why?” Taemin asked nonchalantly as he sipped loudly on his tea. “What? Am I going to get fired for being gay?”

“Maybe…” Jonghyun hissed.

“No way, I make the money in this place; they’d be stupid to get rid of me – anyway.” Taemin had a habit of cutting conversations short and changing the topic. “Take me to this bakery. When are you off again?”

“Lunchtime,” Jonghyun answered, shifting his gaze back to his screen. He was aware that didn’t sound particularly healthy to visit a bakery twice in one day, but he supposed a few hundred more reps at the gym later would make up for it.

Taemin glanced over Jonghyun’s lithe body and raised an eyebrow. “Really? How do you stay so slim?” This was under his breath but Jonghyun heard it, clear as day. “Tag me along, I want to try some more stuff.”

“Alright,” Jonghyun said reluctantly. He liked Taemin, he really did, but the youngest member of the team was by far the most extravagant when it came to a personality. If Jonghyun were a desk lamp, Taemin would be a disco ball, to put it bluntly.

“Awesome! I can’t wait dude,” Taemin said, pushing himself away from Jonghyun’s desk and sauntering over to his own. Jonghyun watched with cautious eyes as he sank into his seat and pulled out his phone, how he managed to make any money was a truly bewildering thing.

A sudden chime from his screen brought Jonghyun back to his own world. Taemin had sent him an email.

_“Do you know if any of the guys who work there are hot?”_

Jonghyun rolled his eyes, yeah, there was one but he’d be damned if he’d let Taemin have a chance with him. He saw Kibum first and Kibum seemed to like him too. At least, he hoped that was the case. He was never one to fall in love at first sight, but Kibum had him claimed, hook, line, and sinker.  


	2. Chapter 2

The bakery was a little busier than the day before as Jonghyun and Taemin discovered the moment they turned the corner to find a short queue spilling out onto the pavement from the shop. Taemin grumbled something under his breath and looked at Jonghyun, who took his place in the queue, eager to see Kibum again.

“This food better taste like gold,” Taemin muttered. “Taking up most of my lunch break.”

“Quit complaining,” Jonghyun said, he gestured over to the line hanging out of McDonalds. “It’s not like the other choice is better.”

Taemin glanced over to the fast food joint and wrinkled his nose in disgust. “Ew, I don’t eat that garbage. I go to the convenience store nearby and grab some gimbap.”

The line began to shorten a lot quicker than the McDonald’s one and within fifteen minutes, Taemin and Jonghyun were near the front door. Jonghyun stood on his tip-toes to catch a glimpse through the window. He could see that perfectly coiffed brunet hair and those sparkling piercings that decorated Kibum’s ears. He began to feel giddy with excitement before he realised that he never gave Kibum his name and he wouldn’t have a sandwich reserved for him. He then watched as a group of young women left the shop with freshly made sandwiches. They looked like a group his ex-girlfriend would hang around with. The more people that left, the more anxious Jonghyun became that there would be no food left.

Thankfully after another five minutes, they were in the bakery. The smell of toasted bread and melting, oozing cheese filled the air and Jonghyun’s already grumbling stomach began to ache. He was starving and the teasing sights of people biting into their food as they left the bakery had begun to pay a toll.

“Oh, it’s you!” Kibum called out from behind the glass case. Jonghyun and Taemin turned around, the latter whistling appreciatively after taking in the sight. “I saved you a tuna melt but you didn’t give me a name…” Kibum trailed off, shifting his eyes nervously. “So, I had to make do.”

“Thank you,” Jonghyun said, making a move to walk over to the glass to pay for his sandwich when Taemin’s strong hand on his elbow held him back. “What?”

“You’re paying for my lunch, I hope you know that,” Taemin said with a smirk and Jonghyun rolled his eyes. Of course it would lead to that.

“Why am I paying?”

“Because… You’re my hyung and you’re supposed to look out for me.”

“You make more than I do,” Jonghyun protested but it fell on deaf ears as Taemin shoved a mozzarella and tomato sandwich in his hand. “Fine,” he grumbled as he handed it over to Kibum.

Jinki emerged from the back and offered Jonghyun and Taemin polite smiles, his eyes lingering on Taemin for a little longer than usual before he turned and went back to work, cutting bread rolls and buttering the bread. “Kibum, don’t forget to toast the panini,” he said.

“Oh, right, your panini,” Kibum said, directing the last part to Jonghyun with a cheery smile. “All together that’s 7,500 won please.”

Jonghyun did the transaction and threw the sandwich back to Taemin when it was handed over. He then watched as Kibum strolled across and toasted the tuna melt sandwich. Jonghyun had daydreamt of the taste, almost feeling it linger on his skin but when Kibum handed over the toasted sandwich when it was done with pink cheeks and a shy smile, he wondered if perhaps it was the face of the baker he dreamt of more.

“Thanks for coming,” Kibum then said, waving as Jonghyun and Taemin filtered out, Taemin already halfway through his own lunch.

“That guy was yummy,” Taemin commented. “Forget Taecyeon, I’d have his dick in my mouth any day.”

“Don’t talk about him like that,” Jonghyun shot back. “Kibum’s nice.”

“Kibum? Is he the one with the piercings? The one you’re clearly in love with?” Taemin asked, gesturing to his own decorated ears with a look of disgust. “I was talking about the other guy. The one wearing the glasses with the smile that could launch a thousand ships.”

“… You try so hard to be poetic and it fails every time,” Jonghyun commented, turning his own sandwich, wrapped in greasy brown paper, a few times before he noticed the writing.

_Brown hair. Cute smile._

* * *

A few days passed by and Jonghyun made it routine to go to the bakery at least once a day – either for breakfast or for lunch. Kibum was just as receptive each time he walked in and the two had even delved in small talk over his visitations. Jonghyun discovered that Kibum and Jinki were half-brothers who shared a mother, who also loved baking, and Jonghyun finally unveiled his name to Kibum ( _Your name is as cute as your smile_ , Kibum had said absentmindedly, and for the rest of the day Jonghyun had been on cloud nine).

“Are you going to that bakery for lunch?” Taemin asked the second week since its discovery.

“I am, yes,” Jonghyun replied, not looking up from his screen. “I’m not buying you lunch again, Taemin.”

“I don’t want you to, I just want to tag along and give my number to Mr Cute Butt.”

“Cute butt?” Jonghyun rebuked. “Do you have any class?”

“When it comes to cute guys?” Taemin questioned as if it were the most obvious thing. “I have class. I just like to make you uncomfortable.”

“Well, it’s working,” Jonghyun replied with a sniff. Taemin laughed boisterously, attracting the attention of a few of their other co-workers.

“So, have you asked Kibum out yet?” Taemin then asked, picking up Jonghyun’s prized rubber band ball and tossing it between two hands. “You’ve been flirting on and off since last week.”

“I haven’t,” Jonghyun answered, snatching the ball from Taemin’s hand and shoving it in a random drawer and slamming it shut. “It’s none of your business.”

“Oh, come on hyung, don’t be like this,” Taemin said. “We’re friends, aren’t we?”

 _Are we?_ Jonghyun questioned. “I wouldn’t call us friends…”

Taemin’s jaw dropped and he sighed heavily. “Well, I think of you as one, and I’m concerned for you, hyung. I heard from Victoria-noona that you’ve been single for the past five years and it’s sad. No one should be single for that long.”

Jonghyun glared at Taemin and with a carefully set jaw, he stood up. “I’m making myself some coffee.”

What he had meant was: _Taemin fuck off back to your own desk and leave me alone_ , but what Taemin had heard was: _Come follow me and berate me some more for being a professional bachelor._

“Let me help you,” Taemin continued, following Jonghyun like a lost puppy. “I know a lot of cute guys who would love to date a guy like you. Are you a bottom or a top?”

Jonghyun glowered over his shoulder. “Must you be so…?”

“Quirky?”

“Invasive,” Jonghyun decided. “Is it any of your business?” Their tones had lowered to a hush as they walked past a few other desks and rose once they reached in the kitchen to find it empty.

“Bottom then,” Taemin said with a smirk and Jonghyun shook his head. “Ah, hyung, I’m sorry. I’ll drop it, but if you want my advice, I have killer gaydar and I know that Kibum guy is gagging for you.”

“Can’t you say it in a more romantic way?” Jonghyun insisted as he switched the coffee machine on and grabbed one of the clean mugs from the overhead cabinet. _World’s Best Boss_ , it read.

Taemin went silent for a moment before out of his mouth tumbled: “Alright, I know that Kibum guy is super into you and your _cute smile_.”

It sent a thrill through Jonghyun’s veins; it felt better to hear it in a way that didn’t feel like this whole thing would be a one-time occurrence. “Are you sure?”

“Positive. My gaydar has never let me down.”

Jonghyun snorted as he filled the mug halfway with jet black coffee and stirred in two spoons of sugar and then filled the rest of the way with milk. He stirred as he left the kitchen, throwing the teaspoon onto the rickety old wooden table that no one used for anything other than outdated magazines and dirty spoons. Taemin didn’t follow him out of the kitchen; he must’ve thought he’d done a job well done.

As Jonghyun sat down, Taemin took his seat and mouth to him: “Still on for lunch though, right?”

And Jonghyun nodded, as any good friend would do.

* * *

The bakery was quiet most days, busy on others and Jonghyun hadn’t worked out the routine because as soon as he was sure he had it down, the world would find a way to tip everything upside down and mess his intuition up. Today, the bakery wasn’t as busy despite the fact that last week it had been stocked to the end of the block with customers and Jonghyun had no hope of getting lunch (thankfully, Kibum had taken to saving him a sandwich every time he came in for lunch).

Taemin and Jonghyun entered easily and Taemin immediately leaned up against the counter, waiting for Jinki carefully with sparkling eyes. Kibum caught him, staring at him dumbfounded before rolling his eyes.

“Good afternoon,” Kibum greeted Jonghyun as the latter walked up to the counter. “I saved you a New York style deli today.”

“Sounds delicious, Kibum,” Jonghyun replied, smiling brightly. He had begun to grow more comfortable around the baker as time wore on and the two were on first name basis, except, Kibum was a little adverse to using Jonghyun’s as easily Jonghyun used his.

“Is your friend okay?” Kibum then asked as he pulled up the brown package housing the sandwich inside. He was glancing over at Taemin who was having an animated chat with himself about which pick-up line to use on Jinki when the elder were to appear.

“I ask myself that same question every day,” Jonghyun replied, handing over the money without being told the price. He had the prices of most of the sandwiches memorised at this point.

“I suppose he’s waiting for my brother, isn’t he?” Kibum asked as he punched in the price and then Jonghyun’s amount.

“Yes, he is.”

“I’ll go fetch him.” Kibum disappeared behind the counter into the backroom.

“Taemin,” Jonghyun then hissed when Kibum disappeared. “Go buy something or else you look suspicious.”

“I’m gonna buy cake, hyung, chill out!” Taemin whispered back with a frown. He straightened himself up when Jinki emerged, wiping flour on his apron. Jonghyun watched amusedly as Jinki’s cheeks tinged pink with delight as Taemin began to flirt with him.

Kibum trailed behind him with a mischievous smile. “It’s kinda cute how he’s into your friend. He hasn’t been on a date since high school.”

Jonghyun felt a pang of sympathy, he could relate to that entirely. “Well, I don’t know if Taemin’s a good match honestly.”

“I think they’re cute,” Kibum commented, watching as Jinki fumbled with the cake Taemin wanted, nearly dropping the slice onto the floor as the other tucked his jet black hair behind his ear with a suggestive smile. “Anyway, here’s your sandwich and here’s your change. Have a nice day, Jonghyun.”

“You too, Kibum.” Jonghyun reached up to take the change and the sandwich, his fingers lingering over Kibum’s for a second as their gazes locked for a moment. And then Kibum looked away with pink cheeks and a bitten smile. Jonghyun nearly tripped over his own feet as he walked out of the door carrying his sandwich. Taemin joined him moments later with a cardboard box and a small piece of paper.

“I got a phone number,” he announced with a gigantic smile on his face and Jonghyun did his best to feel happy for him but the jealousy that coated his throat and stomach with acid began to bubble. How was this so easy for Taemin and so hard for him? “Oh, wow, looks like you did too.”

Jonghyun stared down at his sandwich in Taemin’s hands – when had he taken it from him? – and snatched it back. On the backside where Kibum wrote Jonghyun’s name with a smiley face was a scrawled out number. The rest of the day, Jonghyun had never felt so giddy in his entire life.

But then that left the burning question.

When exactly should he call Kibum? And what would he even say?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me!
> 
> twitter: @jjong_bluemoon


	3. Chapter 3

Jonghyun’s nightly routine involved traversing to the gym around the corner from his apartment block. He would spend up to three hours there, warming up and counting reps before cooling down with a gentle jog. He would walk directly back to his apartment after he was done and fall into the shower to clean himself of the day’s grime. He would then snuggle up on the sofa with his dog, Roo, curled up on his lap and the two would fall asleep to whatever variety show was on that night.

This night would be like no other as Jonghyun took the bus to the gym once he had finished with work, him and Taemin going their separate ways, and doing as many reps as he could before exhausting himself out. Kibum’s number weighed on his mind as he pulled through two-hundred pull-ups, music blaring through his wireless headphones.

When Jonghyun had finished he wiped his face with the towel he always brought along and took a long swig from his sports bottle. A large figure shadowed over him for a second and Jonghyun turned to look over his shoulder. The man before him was taller by a few centimetres with a toned physique, large eyes and sandy brown hair, similar to Jonghyun’s own shade but maybe with fewer blond highlights.

“Are you done here?” The man asked, pointing at the bars.

“Oh, yeah, sorry,” Jonghyun said, side stepping away from the equipment. The tall man set aside his own towel and water bottle and made a point to move the bars a little higher. He then clung tightly and began to pull himself up with ease. Jonghyun rarely stared at other gym-goers, always finding it invasive but he was mesmerised by the way the taller man’s muscles tensed and relaxed under his golden skin. A man like that would have no issue finding a partner.

With an indignant sigh, Jonghyun left the gym and walked back to his apartment, huddling up in his coat as the weather began to get colder. He wondered if it would be too forward of him to contact Kibum straight away after receiving the phone number. Surely, if Kibum was being forward enough to give it to him in the first place, then Jonghyun could step out of his own comfort zone, too.

As he entered his apartment, Roo yipping at his feet as he walked into the foyer, he forwent his usual shower and instead picked up his phone that he had programmed Kibum’s number into earlier. His thumb hovered over the call button as he sank into his worn out sofa. Roo jumped up and curled herself into her owner’s lap with a content sigh as he weighed the pros and cons of calling Kibum at this moment.

He then stood up, disturbing Roo who sighed grumpily, and paced around the living room for a good twenty minutes, trying to reason with himself. It had been so long since he had asked someone on a date. Was Kibum even interested in him that way?

He imagined if Taemin were here, he would tell Jonghyun to buckled up and call him. “Don’t be a little bitch, hyung. Just call him,” is what Taemin would likely say if he knew the pressure Jonghyun was putting himself under.

And then, as if Taemin could read his mind, his phone began to ring in his hand.

“Hello?”

“Hyung, have you called Kibum yet?”

Jonghyun groaned and fell back onto his sofa, further disturbing Roo who jumped off completely, shooting Jonghyun the nastiest look and disappearing into the bedroom. “No.”

“I had a feeling that would be the case. Look, just buck up and call him. What’s the worst that could happen?”

“He could hate me?”

Taemin snorted and Jonghyun sighed. “Hyung, you’re a mess. You’re gorgeous and you have the best body I’ve ever seen. Hell, if I knew you weren’t shoved so far in the closet, I’d ride you - but that’s not the point. You’re _crazy_ attractive and Kibum would be _crazy_ not to see that.”

Jonghyun wasn’t sure if he should feel offended or grateful for Taemin’s word vomit. “He seems out of my league.”

“Why? Because you count stocks for a living and he bakes cakes?”

“Because he’s beautiful and interesting and I’m an accountant.”

Taemin laughed. “Just call him, you’ll be surprised.” And then he hung up. Jonghyun stared at his phone for a few minutes and really began to consider pressing the call button on Kibum’s name, but instead he dropped his phone onto his coffee table and took a shower instead.

He went to sleep forgetting to make that call.

* * *

When Jonghyun and Taemin went into the bakery for lunch the next day, someone new was leaning up against the counter talking to Kibum. Jonghyun instantly recognised him from the sandy brunet hair and large eyes that he was the man who had taken over the pull-up bars at the gym. He began to feel incredibly inadequate when the man said something that made Kibum giggle behind his hand.

“Wow, who’s he?” Taemin asked Jonghyun. Jonghyun shrugged his shoulders. “Oh, he’s yummy. Not as handsome as Jinki-hyung, but _damn_.”

Jonghyun wondered if Taemin had working eyes because this stranger flirting with Kibum was definitely ten times better looking than Jinki, but maybe Taemin’s eyes were hazed by rose-tinted glass.

“Jonghyun!” Kibum greeted with a bright smile. “I saved you another tuna melt today,” he said. The man stared over at Jonghyun, his eyes narrowing before widening in recognition.

“Oh, I know you! You go to my gym! You’re a lot shorter when you aren’t wearing those heeled boots,” the man teased, pointedly staring at Jonghyun’s brown work shoes.

Jonghyun felt his blood began to boil. Yes, he wasn’t as tall as this stranger, and yes he may take pleasure in a little extra lift to his step, but that didn’t make him _short._ “Yeah, that’s me.”

“You two know each other?” Kibum asked. “What did you say to him, Minho?”

“Nothing, I just asked him if he was done using the pull-up bars,” Minho replied with a shrug and Jonghyun slid in next to him to receive his sandwich. Even up close, Minho was devilishly handsome and his already towering height made Jonghyun feel two feet tall. “Is this the guy you’ve been talking about?”

Kibum blushed. “Shut up, Minho, or I’ll beat your ass.”

Minho snorted and then offered Jonghyun his hand. “I’m Minho. In case you couldn’t tell.”

“Jonghyun.”

“Minho’s my childhood friend,” Kibum explained. “He helped me and Jinki invest so we could open this bakery.”

“The best investment I ever made,” Minho replied with a wink and Kibum rolled his eyes. “Anyway, I should go, I have a meeting in half an hour and I can’t smell like bread.”

“Yeah, that’s right, run away you coward,” Kibum called after Minho as he left. He then began to punch the price of the panini in on the cash register, shaking his head with a smile. “He’s a bit of a jerk, I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine,” Jonghyun waved off with a smile. Kibum returned the smile and then turned to toast the panini as Jonghyun left the correct amount for Kibum to take. The exchange was rather quick this time and soon Jonghyun and Taemin were out of the bakery, walking to their office.

“You didn’t call him, did you?” Taemin surmised.

“How could you possibly have known?”

“You would be acting different.”

Jonghyun sighed. “I forgot.”

Taemin laughed. “You forgot!? Oh, my God, you’re an idiot. If you’re not careful, that Minho guy is going to sweep him up.”

Jonghyun stopped walking and stared back over to the bakery. “You mean, he likes Kibum?”

Taemin nodded as he bit into his prawn salad roll. “And for a long time too given their history. You’re being slow, Jonghyun, if you let this one slip away, you’ll never forgive yourself. Do I need to coach you in how to call someone?”

Jonghyun shook his head. “I can do it, I’m not a kid.”

“I beg to differ,” Taemin retorted, taking another bite of his roll.

* * *

Jonghyun made it a point to call Kibum the moment he passed through the threshold of his house. And as soon as his butt hit the sofa, his thumb had pressed the green call button and he began to play the waiting game. Roo watched from the other end of the sofa expectantly and Jonghyun leaned across to scratch at her ears for a second before Kibum answered.

“Hello?”

“Kibum, hi, It’s me… It’s Jonghyun…”

“Jonghyun! I was wondering when you would call,” Kibum said with a slight smile to his voice. “I was worried I’d scared you off.”

“No, no… Sorry, I get a bit forgetful.” Jonghyun was about to continue before he heard a deep voice on the other end of the line. “Are you with someone?”

“Yeah, but it’s just Minho,” Kibum replied.

“Ah, Minho.” Taemin’s words began to hammer into his head, swirling around like a tornado. Minho and Kibum were close, very close, and Minho was _very_ interested in Kibum. “Sorry, I’ll leave you two-“

“No!” Kibum said a little too loudly. “Don’t worry about it; he always comes over to eat me out of house and home. He’ll be leaving soon, right, Minho?”

“Who says I am?” Minho replied, clear as day to Jonghyun’s ears.

“I say,” Kibum replied before turning back into the receiver. “Anyway, I’m really glad you called. I was wondering if you were free this weekend?”

Jonghyun never made plans over the weekend, mainly because all of his friends were married and rarely did things without their spouses, and nothing made Jonghyun feel even worse for being single than being surrounded by happy couples. “I am.”

“Excellent, there’s a new exhibit at the Museum of Art and I want to check it out, but Minho’s an uncultured swine and my brother has plans. Would you like to accompany me?”

Minho began to say something but Jonghyun blocked it out with his reply: “Yes, I would!”

He could almost hear Kibum smile over the line. “Great, I’ll meet you outside the City Hall station and we can walk over together. Maybe we could grab a bite to eat after, too?”

“Sure, that sounds really good,” Jonghyun replied.

“Awesome. I’ll see you on Saturday then, Jonghyun.”

“It’s a date,” Jonghyun said before the two bid each other goodbye and hung up. Jonghyun dropped his phone to his side and jumped up from the sofa. He began to dance energetically across the living room, chanting that he had a date on Saturday. A first real date in over five years. Roo watched lazily from her side of the sofa before yawning and falling asleep, curled up on herself.

As Jonghyun went through the rest of his nightly routine, he had a giant smile plastered on his face. He really couldn’t wait for Saturday to come, even if it was a few days away.

* * *

Jonghyun had the misfortune of bumping into Minho again at the gym the next evening. He had just finished bench-pressing and was wiping himself down as Minho approached with a sunny smile.

“Jonghyun, right?” Minho asked, his smile unchanging.

“Um… Yeah. Minho.”

“Yeah, that’s me,” Minho replied with a laugh. “Sorry if this comes across as rude or arrogant but Kibum and Jinki-hyung are like brothers to me so I just gotta know what your intentions with Kibum are.”

“Oh I-“ Jonghyun was at a loss for words. He had expected Jinki to be the one probing about this kind of stuff considering he and Kibum were blood related but had hadn’t anticipated getting it from a total stranger. “I just want to make him happy,” Jonghyun answered. He tried his best to not think about Taemin’s words for earlier and the implication of Minho’s questions. So far Minho hadn’t been threatening but even still, he might not have had the height on Minho, but he definitely had more muscle mass and could easily stand his own in a fight (or at least he assumed he would, he’d never been in a fight before) but he hoped it would never come to it.

Minho’s smile turned stiff, just for a moment before he laughed heartily and clapped Jonghyun’s shoulder. “For Kibum’s sake, I hope you do. He hasn’t had the best luck with men.” Jonghyun swallowed thickly, Minho’s whole demeanour hadn’t changed but the meaning behind his words definitely did. “But, I hope you have a good _date_ on Saturday.”

Jonghyun didn’t try to think about the way Minho’s smile tensed when he said the word date.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me!!
> 
> twitter: @jjong_bluemoon


	4. Chapter 4

After the initial phone call, Kibum had left Jonghyun a message on the Friday evening to get to their arranged spot for eleven o’clock. Jonghyun had rolled out of bed, bright and early, on the Saturday morning after barely getting a wink of sleep. He dressed himself in a fluffy grey sweater to combat the chilly October air, and jeans with large rips in the knees, pairing them both with beige boots. He was out of the door before he could put his contact lenses in or snatch his glasses up.

He had gotten out of the station with ease, bumping into a few pushchairs as he stumbled up the stairs and the breath of fresh air that blew across his face as he left the station was his reward for getting out without dying or breaking a limb. He peered through blurry vision, trees blending together and people become faceless blobs, as he tried to see Kibum through the mass of people. He nearly gave up with frustrated tears before a hand landed on his shoulder.

“Jonghyun!” Kibum said excitedly as Jonghyun turned around. He could make out that Kibum was smiling and up close he could see the shapes of his features but the details were lost in a mesh of what looked like an awful watercolour painting. “I was waving but I don’t think you saw me… Are you okay? You look like you’ve forgotten something.”

Jonghyun shook his head. “I’m fine,” he replied, omitting his myopia. It wasn’t necessary for Kibum to know. “I was just overwhelmed by the crowd.”

“Okay.” Kibum seemed to accept his answer before linking one arm with Jonghyun’s and walking the two across the large museum. The exhibition Kibum was keen on seeing was advertised on a giant quite poster hanging outside the museum, flapping in the low wind. He hadn’t thought that contemporary art would be Kibum’s thing, but then again, he really didn’t know much about the baker, other than he liked to bake, Jinki was his half-brother, and the fact that he grew up with that stud Minho. “I’m so glad you agreed to come with me,” Kibum said.

“Oh?”

“Yeah, I’ve wanted to see this exhibit for so long but… I never really had time. Jinki said he was closing the bakery today because he has plans so I thought I would take advantage.”

“Plans? With whom?” Jonghyun asked. Somehow, he had a feeling he already knew.

“He wouldn’t say,” Kibum confessed. “But I have a feeling it’s your friend, Taemin.”

Jonghyun laughed cheerily as they walked up the path and into the museum entrance, at least he and Kibum were on the same page there. “I didn’t know this was your kind of thing.”

“Oh, I love art,” Kibum said. “If I hadn’t opened _KiKi,_ I would’ve gone to an art school, no doubt.”

“You’ll have to show me your artwork sometime,” Jonghyun then said with a wink and Kibum grinned.

“I think that’s a second date event,” Kibum teased with a bitten back smile. They came up to the reception and were handed flyers, containing the history and information of Ju Jae Hwan and Kim Dong Kyu. As they made their way towards the hall where the exhibition was contained, Kibum bumped into a tall body. “Oh, sorry,” he apologised, bowing politely.

“Kibum-ah?” Minho said, turning around and making himself known. He was dressed well in a tan trench coat and white shirt tucked into well-fitting dark wash jeans. Jonghyun suppressed an eye roll; of course Minho would try and crash their date, especially when considering Taemin’s warning.

“Minho? What are you doing here?” Kibum asked, his smile brightening considerably and a tight feeling began to form in Jonghyun’s stomach. That smile faded into a playful frown as Kibum slapped at Minho’s arm with his flyer. “You said you weren’t interested in this exhibit.”

Minho shrugged his shoulders. “I had nothing better to do and you kept talking about it so I thought I would check it out. Mind if I join you two?” He asked, unashamed.

Jonghyun was ready to have everything slip through his fingers and resigned himself to being third wheel on his own date when Kibum said: “No, thanks, Jonghyun and I are going to go around on our own. See you later maybe?”

“Alright,” Minho said with a defeated sigh and let the two enter the hall by themselves. Jonghyun took a quick glance at Minho before the doors swung shut behind them. Jonghyun couldn’t see Minho’s face but he had a feeling that his eyes were fixated on Kibum’s retreating form. He then sighed and stared down at his feet before looking around with a bashful smile.

“Are you sure?” Jonghyun asked.

“That I don’t want Minho to third wheel? Yes, I’m sure,” Kibum replied with a broad grin. “I asked _you_ out, not him.”

Jonghyun felt like the wooden floorboards beneath his boots had turned into the softest cotton clouds as he waltzed around in a daze, Kibum had chosen him over Minho and the world felt right. He couldn’t see the art pieces very well but he could appreciate their tone whenever Kibum explained the history behind the pieces.

“Both of them are trying to convey different ideas under the same theme. Hwan is focusing on a macro-violence… I think this is about the war…” He said as he peered between the flyer and the painting. “Whilst Kim focuses on a micro-violence, so nationalism and the like.”

“So, they’re exploring a different kind of violence?”

“Basically, I think it’s the generational gap that’s being highlighted the most here, though…” Kibum trailed off as he looked to the other end of the room. “I think Minho’s following us.” He sighed. “I’m sorry, you don’t mind if he joins us?”

Jonghyun wanted to say he did mind, that he wanted Kibum’s attention all to himself but he was a pushover when it came to beautiful men. “No, I don’t mind.”

Kibum smiled apologetically and left Jonghyun in front of a cool-toned piece. He could make out the shape of a brown animal and sighed. He really should’ve brought his glasses. Two seconds later Kibum and Minho came back over. “Sorry about that,” Kibum said, wrapping his arm back around Jonghyun’s. “What are you looking at?”

“Just this dog painting.”

Kibum stared at the picture for a few seconds before bursting out in laughter, doubling over. “Jonghyun, that’s not a dog!” Jonghyun blinked, trying to clear his vision as best as he could, Kibum wiped a tear from his eye. “It’s a small child holding an iPhone.”

Jonghyun kicked at the floor in embarrassment. “Sorry I…”

“Let me guess, you forgot your glasses,” Kibum said, leaning onto Jonghyun’s shoulder. “You’re adorable, why didn’t you just say so?”

Jonghyun scratched the back of his head. “I guess I didn’t want you to feel put out by having to describe every painting to me…”

Kibum rolled his eyes. “Don’t be silly, I love this kind of thing. Shall we start from the beginning so you get the whole picture? It’s in chronological order.”

“Oh-“

“No,” Minho interrupted. “He hasn’t missed much. Let’s just finish the exhibit.”

Kibum scoffed under his breath. “Rude asshole. Are you sure you don’t want to go back?” Kibum looked at Jonghyun earnestly, or at least Jonghyun imagined it was in earnest because he couldn’t really make out any facial expressions beside a smile and a frown.

“I don’t mind,” Jonghyun said, shrugging. In all fairness, the exhibit hadn’t really interested him until Kibum began to explain the history and reason of it all. “Yeah, let’s go back.”

Kibum smiled brightly and tugged Jonghyun back to the start of the hall, much to Minho’s chagrin. He tagged after them with a deep frown, hands buried in his coat pockets. Kibum started from the first painting, explaining the scene, the colours and hues, and the objects of interest to Jonghyun who could make them out vaguely through his terrible eyesight. Minho began to grow more and more restless, interrupting Kibum to try and entice him with mango shortcake that he’d seen in the museum café but Kibum dismissed him each time.

As Kibum went through each and every painting, making sure to tell Jonghyun the name of the artist before he spoke of the picture so that he would have a vague idea of the theme that would be explored, Jonghyun began to get more and more interested in the exhibit and by the end he bought a few postcards containing the most intriguing paintings in Jonghyun’s mind. He thought his sister might appreciate them as she was a fan of art too.

“Let’s go get some cake,” Minho suggested when Kibum and Jonghyun were done in the gift shop.

“Cake does sound good,” Kibum murmured. “Do you want to go anywhere in particular, Jonghyun?”

In honesty, Jonghyun was sure no cake could outshine Kibum and Jinki’s creations but he was also craving something sweet. “No, I don’t mind. Let’s get some cake.”

Kibum latched back onto him as the three walked on to the café. Minho stopping to explain a few of the sculptures they passed on the way. A few of them had been purchased from Europe and were on loan to the museum for the current year. He and Kibum began to discuss the style and the era it had been sculpted in and Jonghyun felt Kibum’s arm fall from around his own. He was left stood watching the two converse animatedly about the marble statues that Kibum was adamant were Italian but Minho disagreed and said were Greek.

“I thought we were going to get cake?” Jonghyun piped up and Kibum took notice of him again.

“Oh, sorry, Jonghyun. We are. Minho distracted me.” He scowled at his friend and Minho returned it by sticking his tongue out. “Child,” he scoffed.

“You know I’ll be forever fifteen,” Minho joked as he paced his steps with Jonghyun and Kibum. Jonghyun didn’t want to think about the fact that Kibum hadn’t returned back to clinging onto him yet and he let it brush off his shoulders, he had plenty of time to be cosy with Kibum.

As long as Minho was out of the picture.

* * *

After the café, Kibum offered to walk Jonghyun back to his apartment. “Let me help you, since you’ve forgotten your glasses,” he insisted when Jonghyun declined.

“He’s not a child, Kibum, he can walk himself home,” Minho joked.

“I’m worried about him,” Kibum replied. “Come on, I’ll take you home, Jonghyun. It’s what a good date would do.” He walked over to Minho and gave his best friend a quick hug before wrapping that familiar arm around Jonghyun’s and helping his descend the staircase. “I’m so sorry about Minho; I didn’t know he would pull such a trick.”

“What do you mean?” Jonghyun asked as he swiped his _Cashbee_ card.

“Crashing our date like that,” Kibum explained. “He’s always done it. Ever since I was a teenager. He would always find out where I was going with any boyfriend I had and crash the date. I would never get to a second one,” he continued with a lamented sigh.

Jonghyun shrugged his shoulder. “I don’t mind. He didn’t scare me off.”

They climbed onto the train that ran in the direction towards Jonghyun’s apartment and took two empty seats. Kibum snuggled into Jonghyun’s shoulder with a contented sigh. “I’m glad.”

Jonghyun felt his heart begin to race, his skin prickling through his jumper when Kibum’s cheek came into contact with it. He could feel the other’s warmth and he leaned in a little closer, savouring it. “You looked really nice today,” Jonghyun whispered. “I know my eyesight’s bad but I could tell you looked good. Sorry I forgot to tell you.”

Kibum gaped at him but then smiled softly, his expression melting. “Thank you.”

When they reached Jonghyun’s station Kibum helped back up the stairs and across the street. They walked into Jonghyun’s apartment and he began to ascend the stairs before turning and looking over the banister at Kibum. “Do you want to come up?” Jonghyun then asked, not thinking of the implications.

“I better not,” Kibum declined with a cheeky smile. “Thanks for today, Jonghyun. It was really nice.”

“You sound like you’re in love with you talk about art,” Jonghyun admitted. “It was so nice to hear it. I could listen to you talk about art for-“

His sentence was cut short as Kibum leant up and pressed his lips squarely against Jonghyun’s. In the confines of his apartment block, Jonghyun was sure no one could seem him but the thrill of being caught kissing a pretty man excited him. Kibum shifted, pressing deeper as he wound his arms around Jonghyun’s neck, Jonghyun’s eyes fluttering closed. Jonghyun barely had time to register what his hands were doing, threading through Kibum’s soft brunet hair before the other pulled away. “I’ll see you tomorrow?” Kibum whispered against Jonghyun’s lips, a little breathless.

“S-sure…” Jonghyun replied, a little weak in the knees.

“Great, I’ll see you then,” Kibum said, before kissing Jonghyun again and leaving the apartment. Jonghyun stared after him until he became a shapeless blob amongst the masses. He then ascended his staircase feeling as light as a feather and collapsed against the sofa when he reached his apartment.

“Let me tell you about my day, Roo,” he said as the dog clambered onto the sofa and curled up on his tummy. He could still feel Kibum’s lips tingling against his own.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I apologise for disappearing! I've been severely under the weather since Tuesday.
> 
> follow me!  
> twitter: @jjong_bluemoon


	5. Chapter 5

Out of all of the days of the week, Jonghyun liked Sunday the best. He would sleep until eleven, or even later, and take Roo out for a long walk along the neighbourhood, dipping into the small playground around the corner so she could have a sniff around on the grass. He would then go to the gym after having a late lunch and would stay for a few hours before picking up something from the convenience store to eat for dinner and then going to bed early after a long, hot shower.

Sunday was the day where Jonghyun could sit back and relax before having to return to the boring world of working in the accountancy office from half eight till five. Time seemed to move slower on Sundays, the sun was just as lazy as she traversed across the sky, blinking behind fluffy clouds. The bus routes changed on Sundays, and fewer people were out and about on the streets, making Jonghyun’s side of the city seem almost apocalyptic.

The gym was also a lot quieter on Sundays, with only a few women gossiping on treadmills and a few other men crowding around the weights. The pull-up bar was free again today and Jonghyun made a direct beeline towards it, setting his towel and water bottle on the ground before someone slid in next to him and took the bars for themselves.

“I was just about-“ Jonghyun started as he looked up, clearly annoyed, but faltered when he found himself staring at Minho’s face once again. “Oh, Minho…”

“Jonghyun,” Minho nodded in acknowledgement before he began to work out, using his core to pull his legs up to his chest and relaxing them again. Jonghyun sighed and picked his belongings back up and walked over to the long row of rowing machines and settled himself on a middle one.

He was about half an hour into his work out when Minho walked over to him, his shadow blocking out the white lights. Jonghyun looked up. “Can I help you?” He asked.

Minho smiled. He did that often, Jonghyun realised. However, whether it was the friendly type of smile or just something else, Jonghyun wasn’t exactly certain. “Actually, I was hoping you can. I figured since we go to the same gym, we could buddy up and help each other count our reps. What do you think?”

Jonghyun considered it for a long second, whilst he quite liked the idea of having a gym buddy, he was a little frightened of being intimidated by Minho’s stamina or worse. “I don’t know…” He replied, trailing off. He looked over Minho’s shoulder and saw that the pull-up bars were still free since Minho left them. “I’ll think about it.” He replied, stopping part way through his third row and climbing off the machine.

As he began to pull himself up, his muscles quaking, Minho appeared before him and began to count his reps. Jonghyun sighed and dropped himself from the bars. “I’m sorry but…”

“Ah, was I being too forward?” Minho asked, scratching at the back of his head. “Sorry… I don’t know anyone else here.”

Jonghyun could feel the guilt gnawing away at him. He couldn’t quite tell what Minho’s game was exactly and the push he kept giving was suffocating Jonghyun just a tad. “No, it’s okay. Um… You can continue then.”

He began to pull himself back up and Minho counted. “How did you and Kibum meet?” He then asked. “10… 11…”

“Oh,” Jonghyun huffed. “I walked into the bakery one day and I was just struck.”

“He’s very beautiful, isn’t he?” Minho asked with a dreamy smile. “He had a lot of attention back at school.”

Jonghyun continued to pump himself up. “I’m sure he did.”

“20… 21… 22…” Minho continued. “Yeah, but he had a picky habit so he never stayed interested for long.”

That’s not what I heard, Jonghyun thought. “I think we were all a bit picky in high school.”

“Yeah,” Minho laughed. “Kibum was the worst for it though. He broke up with someone just because they were shorter than him.”

Jonghyun stopped his pull ups. “O-oh?”

“Yeah, poor guy was wrecked too, he tried to find all of these remedies to make him grow but it didn’t work.”

“How many reps am I on now?” Jonghyun asked, trying to shake the conversation from his head… and ego.

“25.”

“Just 25 more to go then,” Jonghyun replied with a quirky smile that Minho returned.

After the last 25 reps, Jonghyun dropped down. Minho handed him his towel and water bottle. “Do you mind counting me now?”

“Not at all,” Jonghyun answered, shifting to the side so that Minho could latch back on. He once again raised the height, his tongue sticking out of his mouth in concentration. He then began to start pulling himself up and Jonghyun counted. Minho completed ten reps in half the time Jonghyun did them and his inadequacy began to build.

Minho was beautiful, in his face, in his body, in his personality (as far as Jonghyun could tell). He was everything Jonghyun wouldn’t be and he wondered, as he continued to count, why Kibum was even wasting his time with him when Minho existed and was very clearly deeply in love with him.

* * *

As per his usual routine, Jonghyun began to walk to the convenience store after his gym session. He had showered off the sweat and grime and changed into a pair of grey sweats and a hoodie. Even though the convenience store wasn’t that far away from the gym, it took longer than usual for Jonghyun to get there. He dragged his feet across the pavement, his stomach heavy as if he had swallowed a thousand rocks. Food was the last thing on his mind at the minute.

He could handle Minho’s overfriendly attitude and the way that Kibum just seemed to light up whenever he was around (they were best friends after all) but the gnawing feeling that Minho was better and definitely ten times more attractive than him was something he found hard to process.

Kibum had broken up with someone for being short once and what if that would happen again? What if Kibum suddenly decided he liked men who were taller, and buffer, and able to lift him up over their shoulder and ravage him and-

Jonghyun looked up and realised he had missed the convenience store and instead, during his long thought process, had walked the half an hour distance to _KiKi’s Bakery_. It was still open. Or, at least, the lights were on but Jonghyun didn’t bother to peek in through the window to see if anyone was serving. He half hoped that Kibum would be there, and half dreaded seeing his face. He had a million questions to ask but none of them sounded right in his head.

He walked in, the bell jingling over the door and looked around. No one.

He stepped in a little closer and admiring the artisanal cakes and pastries before the sound of low, heavy breathing and gasping moans had his ears, and cheeks, prickling with warmth.

“Hyung,” someone moaned, quietly from behind the row of industrial ovens. “Lower… _yes_ …”

“Taemin-ah,” came the response and Jonghyun froze completely. Oh, God, what had he just walked in on?

He side stepped a little until he could peek around the corner. From his place he could see the back of someone wearing a white pastry chef’s coat and black trousers. He could also see hands clawing at the coat and legs wrapped around the waist.

Jonghyun then cleared his throat and the two guilty parties jumped apart. Jinki smoothed his chef’s coat and Taemin ran a hand through his mussed up hair. “Hi,” Jonghyun said, holding his hand up.

“Jonghyun-hyung, it’s just you,” Taemin said with relief. “Jinki-hyung and I were just…”

“We were… Um…” Jinki was lost for words as he looked around the kitchen. “Waiting for the bread rolls to bake.”

“Yep!”

Jonghyun rolled his eyes, of all the times for Taemin to be a blushing virgin. “Sure, _that’s_ what you were doing. Is Kibum in?”

“He’s in the backroom counting stock. Do you want me to get him?” Jinki asked, his cheeks flushed and lips swollen. What on Earth were they thinking making out in the kitchen with Kibum so close?

“Is it okay if I go see him?” Jonghyun then asked. He’d never been behind the counter. Jinki hesitated for a second but nodded. Jonghyun walked through the kitchen and through the back door to the stockroom. Kibum had his back to the door and he was muttering to himself under his breath. “Kibum?”

He turned around in surprise, knocking over a bag of flour and Jonghyun leapt forward and caught it before it burst and spilled across the floor. “Oh, my hero,” Kibum replied when Jonghyun handed it back to him with a wry smile. “What are you doing here?”

“I saw Minho at the gym,” Jonghyun started and winced. He hadn’t wanted to start the conversation like this.

“Oh? What did that idiot say this time?” Kibum asked as he went back to counting and writing numbers on his clipboard.

“Oh nothing much,” Jonghyun replied with a shrug. Kibum looked over his shoulder at him sceptically. “We just talked about how we met-“

“You and Minho?”

“No, you and me,” Jonghyun reiterated and Kibum laughed. “Minho and I know how we met.”

“Yes, that would be an odd thing to discuss,” Kibum mused before turning back to the stock.

“He mentioned about your dating record at high school.”

Kibum paused and didn’t turn around this time. “Oh?”

“Yeah, he mentioned that you… broke up with someone because they were shorter than you…”

Kibum sighed heavily and turned on his heel. “Don’t listen to him, that’s not what happened at all. Ugh, that fucker is doing it again.”

“Sorry?”

“He does this thing where he tests people I’m interested in to see if they’re willing to stick around. It’s horrible and I’m so sorry,” Kibum said, hugging the clipboard close to his chest. Jonghyun didn’t miss the way he avoided his eyes. “But… He’s not wrong, I was a bit of a dick in high school.”

Jonghyun snorted. “So was I.”

“No, I mean. I actually did break up with a kid because he was shorter than me.”

“Oh, right…” Jonghyun shifted on his feet. “Do… Do you…”

“Don’t get me wrong,” Kibum explained. “It wasn’t _just_ because of his height; he was a bit of an asshole and he had some kind of vendetta against Minho because he was the tallest in our class.”

The knots in Jonghyun’s stomach began to tighten, the rocks became heavier. “Right…”

Kibum sighed and ran a hand through his hair. “I don’t think that way now. I wouldn’t break up with anyone unless I thought they were super unattractive.”

But you thought that a height difference was something undesirable to you, Jonghyun wanted to say but Kibum had set aside his clipboard and pen.

“Jonghyun,” Kibum drawled, moving closer. “Don’t listen to Minho, okay?” He leaned in closer and rested his forehead against Jonghyun’s. From this distance Jonghyun could easily close the gap and reclaim Kibum as his.

“But…”

“Shush,” Kibum whispered, pressing a finger to Jonghyun’s lips. “I’m interested in you, okay? And, I happen to like your height. You’re the perfect size.”

“For what?”

“For this.” Jonghyun hummed happily when Kibum closed that tantalising gap. His hands threaded through Jonghyun’s light brown hair, tugging at the short, clipped ends as Jonghyun ran his tongue along Kibum’s lower lip. Kibum parted his lips and pressed in deeper, pushing himself up against Jonghyun completely, their bodies aligning as if they were two halves of one desperate whole. Jonghyun gripped onto Kibum’s waist and spun him around, backing him up against the wall and Kibum groaned into his mouth, teeth grazing over Jonghyun’s bottom lip. Those hands tugged harder on Jonghyun’s hair, encouraging Jonghyun to delve further.

Jonghyun’s mind trailed to Minho’s dreamy smile back at the gym and he pulled away immediately, lips sore and red. Kibum was flush up against the wall, his eyes unfocused and crossed, his cheeks a healthy shade of aroused and his lips pouty and glistening.

“Why did you stop?” Kibum asked, his voice a hoarse whisper.

“I just… Don’t want to give too much away too soon,” Jonghyun lied. I’m scared you’ll leave me for your best friend, he wanted to say. I want to keep you interested in me. Think only of me.

Kibum scratched at his head in confusion. “Alright… I can wait for more of that, definitely, but I might get impatient if you don’t ask me out again very soon…”

Jonghyun smiled, he could feel every inch of Kibum’s words and Minho’s contradictions weigh on his shoulders. He had hoped that seeing Kibum would’ve relieved the weight of Minho’s story but, it only seemed to add on, burying him in a pile of lies and half-truths. Kibum was keeping something a secret, he could sense it and Jonghyun was terrified to find out what it could be.

Kibum and Jonghyun left the backroom and much to Jonghyun’s relief, Taemin had made his departure during the time Jonghyun had spent in the stockroom. Jinki was wrapping up a few sandwich rolls to take home and gave one to Jonghyun.

“On the house,” Jinki said when Jonghyun reached back for his wallet. He then added a little wink in hopes that Jonghyun would understand the cause of the bribe.

“I’ll talk to you later,” Jonghyun promised Kibum and Kibum walked him out with a relieved smile. As Jonghyun left he heard Kibum turn back to Jinki.

“You don’t usually give out free food. What have you done?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> follow me!!
> 
> twitter: @jjong_bluemoon


	6. Chapter 6

Jonghyun didn’t realise he had been daydreaming until his instant messenger jingle popped up in the corner of his screen. He was facing a blank spreadsheet, having closed his client’s monthly revenue away after performing his calculations. He looked at the little waving notification and clicked on it.

 **Taemin:** Do you sleep with your eyes open or do you just get really fixated on your screen. I’m sure a human is supposed to blink.

Jonghyun smirked and looked over to Taemin’s desk. He was currently on the phone with his own client, his attention completely devoid of Jonghyun’s desk.

 **Jonghyun:** I do actually sleep with my eyes open but I was only daydreaming this time.

He looked back over to Taemin’s desk, watching as his colleague clicked his space bar and read the message. Then, with a one-handed agility, he typed a response without faltering in his conversation at all.

 **Taemin:** Freaky. Anyway, are we going to _KiKi’s_ today or are you on a diet?

 **Jonghyun:** Why would I be on a diet?

 **Taemin:** Just wondering since you’re not getting your sugar intake from the cakes anymore. If you catch my drift.

Jonghyun snorted.

 **Jonghyun:** I could say the same back to you.

Taemin’s lip quivered slightly as he read Jonghyun’s response.

 **Taemin:** You could say the same. How’s it going with Kibum?

 **Jonghyun:** Well. His friend’s a bit of a friendly giant.

 **Taemin:** A little too friendly?

Jonghyun chewed on his lower lip as he fumbled with the keys to type his response.

 **Jonghyun:** Perhaps.

 **Taemin:** He goes to your gym right? I’ll come with you tonight and hopefully he’ll leave you alone.

 **Jonghyun:** You’d do that?

Jonghyun took a sneaky glance over to Taemin’s desk. He heard him say goodbye to his client and face the screen full on. He read Jonghyun’s question and looked over at him. There was something intense in the way Taemin looked at him, as if he had the ability to read him like a picture book. Taemin then nodded, gifting him with his sweet smile before turning back to his phone and dialling another number.

Jonghyun figured it was time to get back to his work too.

 **Jonghyun:** Thanks, you’re a good friend.

* * *

Kibum was the only one on the register when Taemin and Jonghyun entered at lunch time. They were a little later than usual thanks to a run-over meeting and their boss’ stubbornness to listen to Taemin’s suggestions. _Perhaps using a different phone system could cut costs, but what if that phone system isn’t as reliable, Taemin, then what?_

“Jonghyun!” He called out first. “Taemin!”

“Nice to know where your loyalties lie,” Taemin joked as he walked over to the refrigerator where the cold sandwiches were kept. They looked like they had been ransacked for the apocalypse, only a small handful remaining.

“Jonghyun,” Kibum said, motioning for Jonghyun to come to the glass case. “Are you busy Wednesday night?”

“Not particularly,” Jonghyun replied. He could skip a gym day. He would skip anything for Kibum.

Kibum clapped his hands. “There’s a musical I’ve been dying to see. Minho gave me two tickets for my birthday and I was hoping you’d join me.”

“You don’t want to take Minho?” Jonghyun asked. “He gave you the tickets.”

“He did but musicals aren’t his thing. I don’t even know what his thing is besides football,” Kibum replied with a grimace. Jonghyun had to agree. Football didn’t interest him either.

“Well, then, I’d be happy to accompany you.”

“And don’t worry, Minho won’t pull the same trick he did on Saturday,” Kibum said with a soft smile. “It’s at the Blue Square so you’ll want to get to Hangangjin and I’ll meet you at the 7-Eleven next to it.” He rummaged in the pocket of his apron and pulled out a white envelope that read:

 _For Kibummie_ , with a small heart next to it.

“This is your ticket,” Kibum explained. “I didn’t want to get it dirty so I put it back in the envelope.”

Jonghyun stared at the writing. Poor Minho, he was in so deep. He almost felt sorry for the other man, if he didn’t feel so pathetic next to him. “Thank you.”

“The time for the play is on the ticket but I’ll be at the 7-Eleven by about half seven.”

“So you want me to get there for half seven,” Jonghyun surmised with a smirk.

“You got it!”

“Excuse me? I’ve been waiting for hours!” Taemin interrupted with a playful grin, bowing Jonghyun out of the way.

“Oh, sorry, Taemin,” Kibum apologised, taking the sandwich from his hand.

“I’ll have the mango tart too please,” Taemin asked.

“Wow, a cake too,” Jonghyun whistled.

“If I’m going to the gym,” Taemin began, looking over his shoulder. “I’m going to treat myself.”

Jonghyun rolled his eyes and turned to the refrigerator. He grabbed a simple ham salad and paid for it after Taemin. He was about to turn and leave when a sharp tug on the lapel of his jacket had him tumbling into the glass case. He didn’t look like the most graceful of individuals as Kibum kissed him sweetly. Jonghyun had a hard time righting himself when Kibum let him go.

“A parting gift,” Kibum explained, pink blush dusting his cheeks.

Jonghyun spent the rest of the walk back to the office in a complete daze, avoiding Taemin’s teasing advances.

“I’m jealous. Jinki-hyung would never do that for me…”

“Taemin, he literally had you in the corner of the kitchen on Sunday,” Jonghyun reminded his co-worker as they sat by his desk.

“Oh yeah,” Taemin said as it dawned on him. His pout then morphed into a dopey smile as he bit into his egg salad sandwich. “That was a good day.”

“Yeah,” Jonghyun agreed. “It was.”

* * *

If there was anything Jonghyun prided himself on, it was the fact that he could clean up well for dates. All of his ex-girlfriends said their favourite thing about him was the way he could go from average to suave super-model within a fifteen minute time span.

He wore a simple suit black and white striped suit with a white t-shirt underneath and slicked his chestnut brown hair backwards with styling wax, his black roots peeking out. This time he didn’t forget his contact lenses.

The train to Hangangjin wasn’t as busy as he had thought; only a few seats were occupied and a few other businessmen were stood up, hands clinging to the overhanging bar as they scrolled through their emails. Jonghyun heard an excited giggling behind him as he took a stand in the middle of a row of seats and in the reflection of the window he saw two young women eyeing him up with suggestive smiles on their faces.

Sorry ladies, he wanted to say, I’m taken and incredibly gay. He laughed to himself quietly, wondering if a time could ever come where he would be able to say that without being met with looks of disgust by other individuals.

“He looks like an idol,” one of the girls whispered.

“I know, he’s so sexy. You should ask him for his number.”

“No! You ask him!”

“No way! You’re the one who saw him first.”

Jonghyun cleared his throat and the two girls stopped whispering, embarrassed. He then made a point to get off the train at his stop and straightened himself out with an air of sexuality. He then strutted up the stairs, one hand in the pocket of his trousers and walked to the 7-Eleven where Kibum waited wearing a stylish green sweater and grey trousers, his grey coat hung over his shoulders like a cape.

“Hey,” Jonghyun said as he walked up to his date and Kibum gave him a once over before breaking out into a wide and impressed smile. “What do you think?”

“You look good,” Kibum said and stroked the lapel of Jonghyun’s coat before pulling him closer. His lips caressed the shell of Jonghyun’s ear as he whispered. “It’ll look better on my bedroom floor though.”

Jonghyun gulped, smiling nervously when Kibum released his grip on Jonghyun’s coat. “You’re being very forward.”

Kibum shrugged his shoulder and smirked. “Does it turn you on?”

Hell yes, Jonghyun wanted to say. “I… Um…”

“Let’s go so we don’t have to fight to get into our seats. Thankfully Minho gave us some pretty good seats. We’re on the third balcony, right at the front.” Kibum reached out and took Jonghyun’s hand, interlacing their fingers as they crossed the road the big theatre. They exchanged their tickets for entry and were immediately inside the Samsung Card Hall where the musical, _In The Heights_ , was being performed. “I’ve always wanted to be an actor,” Kibum mused as they took their seats. Kibum was right, Minho paid for really good seats. Thanks, Minho, Jonghyun said internally.

“I thought you wanted to do art?”

“I wanted to do a lot of things,” Kibum joked. “What about you? I’m sure accounting wasn’t the thing you wanted to do most.”

Jonghyun scratched at his hair, forgetting he had put product in it. His hand came away sticky and he sighed, wiping it on his trousers. “No, it’s not. I wanted to do music but my dad hated the idea of me pursuing a career in it. He told me to focus on my studies and give it up… And I did.”

Kibum gaped. “You gave it up? Just like that?”

“Well, what could I do? I couldn’t fight my dad, no matter how much I wanted to.”

“That’s so awful. If you had the chance to do it now, would you pursue music?”

Jonghyun pondered for a moment. He hadn’t really considered it another thought but if he were given a second chance… “Yeah, I would.”

Kibum smiled gently and then took Jonghyun’s hand and squeezed it. “I hope you get the chance to one day. No one should be stuck doing something they don’t love. And I’m sure no one enjoys accountancy… Except maybe Taemin.”

“Taemin just likes to make money,” Jonghyun snorted and Kibum laughed.

“That sounds about right. He did say he liked to play to win and he liked to suck some dick but…”

“He said that to you?”

“Yeah,” Kibum replied. “When he came into the bakery on Sunday. Those two think they’re sneaky but I know.”

“You know, huh?” It was Jonghyun’s turn to laugh. “Don’t say anything, I quite like the idea of free sandwiches when I catch them banging in the kitchen.”

Kibum slapped at Jonghyun’s arm. “That’s our income!” He then laughed and leant up against Jonghyun’s shoulder. “You smell really good. What cologne do you use?”

“Oh it’s… _Voyage D’Hermes_ ,” Jonghyun replied, scratching at his neck this time instead of his hair.

“Mmm, it smells so good,” Kibum pressed his nose into Jonghyun’s coat.

The main lights in the hall began to dim and Kibum sat up immediately, turning his attention to the stage where a heavy red curtain kept the depths hidden from the audience’s impatient eyes. The stage lights began to flicker and the curtain parted to reveal a lonely street, until a shadow appeared wearing a backpack. The moment the music filled Jonghyun’s ears, he was entranced and immediately transported into this new world.

* * *

“Are you hungry?” Kibum asked as they exited the theatre. A couple of hours passed by, even though Jonghyun swore it had only been fifteen minutes.

“Yeah, I am.”

“There’s a grill place that’s just down the street from here,” Kibum said, linking his arm around Jonghyun’s. “I heard it’s quite good.”

“Is this also on Minho?” Jonghyun joked.

Kibum laughed happily. “I wish. No, it’s on me this time.”

“Let me pay,” Jonghyun then said.

“But, I was the one who suggested the date.”

Jonghyun shrugged. “So? Let me treat you. You can treat me next time.”

“Ooh,” Kibum chuckled. “There’s a next time?”

“Only if you want there to be a next time,” Jonghyun answered. Flirting with Kibum came as easily as his love of music once had.

“Of course I want there to be a next time. Don’t forget what I said about your suit.”

Jonghyun hadn’t forgotten. During the intermission halfway through the play, Kibum excused himself to go to the bathroom. Whilst alone, Jonghyun had his thoughts to keep him company but Kibum’s suggestive invitation was the only thing his mind could conjure. He wondered if he had meant it, and if he had meant for it to occur soon.

“Is that going to be a thing that happens tonight or…?”

Kibum looked at Jonghyun with dark eyes. “If you play your cards right over dinner, it may very well be tonight.”

And with that, Kibum dragged him into the restaurant with a promising smile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i'm so sorry for the late update!!! my home wifi gave out on sunday and i've been stuck!!
> 
> anyway, here it is! 
> 
> follow me:  
> twitter: @jjong_bluemoon


	7. Chapter 7

During the course of the dinner, Jonghyun learnt two new things about Kibum. One, Kibum hated carrots and when the waitress brought over a small bowl of roasted vegetables, he had turned his nose up in disgust and shoved all of the carrots onto Jonghyun’s side, saving the eggplant for himself. And two, Kibum didn’t handle alcohol as well as he thought he did.

One bottle of soju in and Kibum was already slipping and sliding across the overly polished table. At the start he had taken his formalities well, remembering to look away from Jonghyun as he drank but as the alcohol began to taint his system, he simply took to downing sloppy shots.

“Why do you never call me hyung?” Jonghyun asked as he clipped the pork belly whilst it grilled on the metal dish. Kibum took a sip of his accompanying beer and burped.

“Excuse me,” he apologised. “I never really thought about it…” He paused for a moment, tongue poking out to lick at the foam on his top lip. “Do y’want me to?”

“I don’t mind,” Jonghyun chuckled. He grabbed his metal chopsticks and handed a few pieces of pork belly over to Kibum, along with a few side dishes and pieces of lettuce.

“Make me a wrap, please, Jongie,” Kibum whined, resting his head on his hand. His elbow was teetering slowly of the edge of the table.

Jonghyun sighed with a playful laugh and took another piece of pork belly off the grill and wrapped it up with garlic and chilli inside a leaf of lettuce. He handed it over to Kibum who waited with his mouth wide open. “You want me to feed you too?” He asked incredulously. He hoped, deep down, that no one was paying attention to their antics. Kibum giggled and moved so that he could take the wrap by his mouth, his lips brushing over Jonghyun knuckles and dragging down to the tips of his fingers.

“Thank you,” he mumbled through a mouth full of food.

“You owe me for that,” Jonghyun said with a grimace as he wiped his hands on the napkins beside their drinks. He made himself a wrap and ate it whole.

“Minho used to feed me,” Kibum then confessed drunkenly, stabbing at the pork belly on his serving plate with a chopstick.

“He what?” Jonghyun asked for clarification.

“When we dated back in high school,” Kibum explained. “He used to feed me like this whenever he took me out to these kinds of restaurants.”

Jonghyun’s breath stuttered in his throat as Kibum carried on like nothing had happened, taking another piece of pork belly and wrapping it up haphazardly in Korean Cabbage before shoving it into his mouth. He groaned unsatisfactorily. “You and Minho…?”

Kibum looked at Jonghyun with bewilderment. “Me and Minho what?”

Had he already forgotten? How much had he had to drink? “Are you nearly finished?” Jonghyun then asked, finishing off his beer. His appetite had been wiped clean by Kibum’s intoxicated ramblings.

“Oh,” Kibum mumbled, finishing his own beer off with an exaggerated gasp. “Let’s go.”

Jonghyun had already paid for the meal at the start, having ordered a regular set for the barbecue, so now all that was left was to help Kibum make his way home. He walked around the table and helped Kibum to his feet, who then flung his arms around Jonghyun’s neck and made home in the crook where it met his shoulder. “Come on Kibum,” Jonghyun urged as he all but dragged him out of the restaurant, apologising to the waiting staff who had been watching the whole event, unfortunately.

“You smell so good,” he whined against Jonghyun’s skin.

“Where do you live?”

“Take me back to yours,” Kibum slurred, trying to push himself up. He then tried to purr suggestively under his breath but it sounded like a noise akin to choking.

“You’re drunk, I’m taking you to your home.”

Kibum huffed and gave directions towards his apartment. It was a few blocks away from the bakery where he worked, which didn’t surprise Jonghyun at all. They grabbed the last train towards the correct station and slumped into the empty seats. Kibum’s head lolled around as he flittered in and out of consciousness. “Jonghyun-hyung,” he then moaned, resting his head against Jonghyun’s shoulder, again. “I like you.”

Jonghyun smiled gently and stroked Kibum’s perfectly coiffed hair. “I like you too, Kibum-ah.” The words felt empty and hollow, knowing that Kibum wouldn’t remember anything he had just said and Jonghyun would be left to carry them like an invisible scar.

“Like you so much,” Kibum continued. “Your smile. Your laugh. Your face. Like you so much.”

Jonghyun bit on his lips and continued to stroke Kibum’s hair, unsure of what to do. “Just go to sleep, Kibum. I’ll carry you to your apartment.” Apartment 10 on the 3rd floor.

“Like you Jongie… Don’t leave me.”

“I won’t leave you,” Jonghyun promised softly as Kibum began to fall asleep against his arm. As they approached the station, Jonghyun stood up and flopped Kibum’s unconscious body onto his back and piggybacked him off of the train and out of the station. A few passers-by gave the couple funny looks and jeering laughs as he walked past but he shrugged them off. They just looked like work buddies who had one too many drinks after a long shift.

He walked all the way up to the third floor, his breath coming out in short, sharp pants that burnt like fire. He definitely didn’t miss anything at the gym today.. He propped Kibum against the flight of stairs as he rummaged through Kibum’s coat pockets to find the key. Kibum’s hand on his sleeve stopped him and jerked him forward so their lips crashed together. Kibum nearly toppled down onto the staircase, hands winding around Jonghyun’s neck to press fiery kisses along his jawline, nose, cheeks, and back to his lips.

“Sleep with me,” Kibum whispered. “Please.”

“Kibum, I can’t,” Jonghyun pleaded. “You’re drunk.”

“No, I’m not, I swear,” Kibum said. His speech still slurred.

Jonghyun sighed dramatically. “Next time, I will.”

“You promise?” Kibum asked with wet eyes.

“I promise,” Jonghyun said, kissing Kibum as a finality before taking the keys out of his pocket and unlocking the front door. He then helped Kibum back onto his feet again and helped him stagger into the apartment. Kibum kicked off his shoes at the door and fell onto the sofa. “Are you staying there?” Jonghyun asked.

“Mmhmm,” Kibum replied, his voice muffled in his assortment of black and white chic cushions.

“Alright, I’ll see you later, Kibum,” Jonghyun said, taking the key out of the door and putting it into a glass bowl. He then closed the door and was left to his own devices.

* * *

Jonghyun was lucky to catch a night bus that would take him to the gym near his own apartment. A few college students dressed in neon clothing were huddled in the back and Jonghyun pondered if raves were still a thing that happened nowadays. As he took his seat, at the front but behind the priority seating, the events of the previous two hours unfolded messily like a scrapbook flickering through blurred photos.

The main concern on Jonghyun’s heart was Kibum’s confession that he and Minho had dated before. It sank his heart deep into the depths of his stomach where it rotted away in jealousy. He could try and compete with Minho’s dashingly good-looks, his charm, and his physique. He could also try and compete with the history between him and Kibum. But the one thing he wouldn’t be able to compete with was the fact that Minho had him first.

Minho might’ve been his first kiss. His first boyfriend. Hell, Minho might have been his first time. It all ate away at Jonghyun like corrosive acid. Minho had seen the things that Jonghyun had seen and experienced the things he had experienced and yet to witness. He didn’t know what Kibum looked like undone and needy. He didn’t know what Kibum looked like completely in love. Minho did.

The rivalry Jonghyun had set in his mind towards Minho went beyond the good-looking childhood friend trope and had landed in the ex-boyfriend who had still remained his best friend department. Who remained best friends with their ex-lovers?

Kibum clearly had no issue of boundaries. Jonghyun considered all of his ex-girlfriends to be his best friends, until the day they broke up and then they turned into complete strangers, brought up in passing conversation.

No, he didn’t know how Tiffany was.

No, he didn’t care that Irene had just gotten engaged.

No, he didn’t see that Jieun had made it as a singer after all that hard work.

He had loved them like they were his other halves, but now they were their own complete whole. It just felt weird in the pit of Jonghyun’s stomach to know that Kibum and Minho had stepped over the line between best friends and lovers and then somehow stepped back over without any implosion or disaster.

And maybe that’s why Minho was still so hung onto Kibum. Because the disaster hadn’t been on Kibum’s side.

When Jonghyun brought it up the next morning, nursing a McDonalds white coffee at his desk, Taemin had sucked air in through his teeth for a long moment before offering his sage advice.

“I suggest you bring it up and discuss it. It won’t progress your relationship if you hang onto it and let it fester,” Taemin said.

Jonghyun knew he was right. He knew it. But there was a sense of self-deprecation that stopped him from any kind of confrontation. “I guess I’ll have to.”

“There’s no guess about it, hyung,” Taemin said. “If you don’t bring it up it’ll only lead to unnecessary tension. You like this guy, don’t you?”

“Yeah.”

“And you want to be with him, don’t you?”

“Yeah.”

“Then you’ve got to put the effort in and _talk to him_.”

Jonghyun never thought he’d see the day where Taemin was actually wiser than himself. “You’re right, Taemin-ah.”

“But not right now. Considering your story he probably has the killer hangover of the century and you look like dog shit.”

“Thanks, Taemin,” Jonghyun replied unenthusiastically.

“Hey, you’re the one who went drinking on a work night,” Taemin said. “Listen, I’ll pop out and get us some McDonalds for lunch and we can devise a plan to get you and Kibum to the point where you’re able to actually look at him and not hate yourself for one goddamn minute.”

“Are you coming with me to the gym again tonight?” Jonghyun then asked as he sipped on his coffee.

“Yeah. It was fun last time.”

Last time had been the Monday where as soon as Taemin and Jonghyun entered the gym, Minho looked directly over at them and then, like a deer in headlights, zig-zagged in the other direction. Taemin had been his buddy for the night, counting his reps and encouraging him whilst Minho looked on.

On one hand, Jonghyun felt guilty because maybe he was being genuine and wanted a friend at the gym, but on the other, Jonghyun’s self-esteem had never felt higher.

“So, you promised Kibum you would sleep with him,” Taemin mused over with a foxy grin.

“Oh, God,” Jonghyun groaned as he lowered his head onto his desk.

“I had no idea you were like that. How many guys have you slept with?”

“None,” Jonghyun admitted. “I’ve only slept with girls.”

“Oh, God, you really are in trouble. Do you want my advice?”

“I’m sure it can’t be worse than ‘take it slow’.”

“Let him take the lead if he knows what he’s doing,” Taemin advised. “It’ll be easier for the both of you. You’re inexperienced and closeted and he’s out, loud, and proud. He’s probably slept with a few men.”

“You’re not helping,” Jonghyun grumbled.

“I never said I wanted to help, I just wanted to give you advice,” Taemin chuckled. “But trust me, if you get someone experienced, it’ll be crazy good. Like _crazy_ good.”

Jonghyun really didn’t want to know how Taemin could be so sure of that. He just hoped he was right.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> dun dun dunnnn!! who else saw that coming?
> 
> follow me!!  
> twitter: @jjong_bluemoon


	8. Chapter 8

It only took a couple of months for Jonghyun and Kibum to grow closer, grow more intimate with one another: Jonghyun had taken up playing his old guitar (something he had spent the whole weekend digging in his backed-up closet to find) and composing songs like he had in high school. Kibum would be curled on his sofa, cup of coffee in hand as the rain pattered against the window pane as Jonghyun played.

“I’ve never heard anything so breath-taking in my life,” Kibum mentioned in awe when Jonghyun finished playing. “Your voice is beautiful, Jonghyun.”

“Just like you,” Jonghyun replied before he was pulled onto the sofa, cup of coffee and guitar long forgotten as Jonghyun came undone in Kibum’s hands, galaxies colliding in his vision as Kibum’s teeth toyed with his earlobe.

Their secrets and hidden pleasure became open quickly, like a flower uncurling in sunlight. Through guided sincerity and trust, Kibum unveiled his sketches to Jonghyun, including some recent ones that were of Jonghyun himself. Those ones in particular Kibum felt the most guarded about, but Jonghyun couldn’t hide the big smile on his face.

Kibum then asked if he could sketch Jonghyun – as practise for life drawing - and Jonghyun agreed, hesitantly at first, a little shy to be thrust into the spotlight so quickly. He posed on Kibum’s sofa, under the watchful gaze of the artist.

“What would you say we are?” Kibum mused as he sketched Jonghyun’s profile gently. He curved over his nose and shaded.

“Um…”

“I would say we’re boyfriends,” Kibum then suggested. He looked over the sketchbook. “Do you want to be my boyfriend?”

“Yes,” Jonghyun said, too quickly, and too breathlessly but it didn’t matter because Kibum had long discarded the sketchbook and was crawling over Jonghyun with a fiery look in his eye that determined how Jonghyun’s stay would end.

That was the day Jonghyun realised what it felt like to share a mutual attraction as their sweaty foreheads pressed together, breaths mingling as they fought to catch gulps of oxygen to calm their spinning minds.

They would spend nights at Kibum’s apartment, sitting on the balcony and watching the stars, counting each flickering beam of light as they blinked between their world and the next. They would share a blanket, sat on Kibum’s dining chairs, with a bottle of red wine (Kibum’s decided favourite) between them.

“You know, I’m so glad you decided to go on that second date with me,” Kibum confessed one day, he had been admiring Jonghyun’s profile whilst the other had been interested in the universe.

Jonghyun turned to look at Kibum, the stars captured in his large, brown eyes. “Yeah?”

“I thought Minho would’ve scared you off. He scares everyone off.”

Jonghyun chuckled. “I did tell you I wasn’t scared of him.”

Kibum laughed along, he traced the rim of his wine glass gently with a finger. “Yeah, I don’t think he does it intentionally, it’s just a habit.” Kibum then bit his lip and his breath hitched in his throat. “I want to apologise for getting drunk on our second date.”

Jonghyun smiled gently and brushed Kibum’s hair from his face. “It’s okay.”

“I wanted to tell you how I felt but I was so nervous… When you accepted that second date I knew you were the one. If Minho couldn’t frighten you away, nothing could.”

It felt like an anvil had sunk in Jonghyun’s stomach and he sipped on his wine delicately, trying to formulate a response. “I… Well…”

“I like you, Jonghyun,” Kibum then said, facing Jonghyun completely. The blanket slipped from his shoulders, pulling his loose t-shirt with him and Jonghyun could see the sliver of perfect skin that he longed to press his nose into, to kiss and bite and mark. “I like you so much it makes me dizzy sometimes.”

“I feel the same way,” Jonghyun replied, setting aside his glass. There was a clink to the right of him as Kibum did the same. “The first day I saw you I was head over heels for you. You took my breath away.”

Kibum giggled softly. The clouds parted and the moon began to glow. Tears of moonlight drenched the young couple as they inched closer together, tantalising whispers playing on their lips as they gently brushed together. Kibum then grabbed hold of Jonghyun’s tight black t-shirt and pulled him in for a bruising kiss.

They shuffled into the apartment, Jonghyun pressing Kibum up against the wall as he searched and felt for that skin he craved, Kibum’s scent filled his nostrils as he pressed his mouth into side of Kibum’s neck, dragging his teeth along pulsating muscle. Kibum keened and melted into Jonghyun’s desperation, tugging at the offending t-shirt and urging for it to come off.

They collapsed onto Kibum’s bed, wrestling with the remaining clothes and each other’s mouths as Kibum wanted to kiss and map every inch of Jonghyun’s abs, cursing the God’s above for not having seen them earlier.

“Christ, you’re gorgeous,” Kibum murmured as he buried his nose into Jonghyun’s thigh. Jonghyun sighed a string of syllables that could be Kibum’s name but he was too far gone to really know.

They crashed over a cliff together, Kibum rolling off Jonghyun with a deep, satiated sigh as Jonghyun fought to catch his own breath. Taemin had been right; to be with someone experienced _was_ crazy good.

“You’re so beautiful,” Jonghyun whispered in the prying moonlight and Kibum shushed him with a gentle smile. “I think I love you.”

Kibum bit his lower lip. “I think I love you too,” he replied, kissing Jonghyun’s nose before falling asleep in his strong arms.

* * *

“I hear you and Kibum are getting serious,” Minho mentioned with a frown as Jonghyun counted his reps on the leg press. Minho had his towel wrapped around his neck, hands on his hips. Jonghyun sighed and stopped his reps and grabbed his bottle of water.

“Yeah, we are,” Jonghyun replied between gulps of water. “So what?”

“Nothing, I was just…” Minho looked off to the distance. “I heard you went to see _In The Heights_ together.”

“Yeah.”

“With my tickets,” Minho frowned again.

“Yeah.” Jonghyun wasn’t fond of playing games. “I’m serious about Kibum, and if that bothers you…”

Minho seemed uncomfortable, it did bother him. “I just want him to be happy.”

“With you,” Jonghyun then said. “You want him to be happy _with you_.”

Minho hesitated for long enough to give Jonghyun the right idea before shaking his head. “We tried and it… didn’t work.”

“But you’re still hoping.”

“No… You have it wrong,” Minho pleaded. “I just don’t want him to get hurt.”

Jonghyun rolled his eyes. “How long have you loved him, Minho?”

“Nearly my whole life,” Minho said honestly. Jonghyun’s heart sank to his knees, Minho had loved Kibum so earnestly, so honestly for so long and it still didn’t work for them… How on Earth was it supposed to work between him and Kibum if they had only loved each other for a few fast-paced months?

“I have to go,” Jonghyun said abruptly before picking up his own towel and leaving the gym. He bypassed the shower and made his way to Kibum’s apartment, catching the first bus he saw outside.

Kibum was in the middle of watching a movie when Jonghyun appeared at his door as if by magic. He looked bemused and pleasantly surprised at the same time. “Jonghyun? What are you doing here?”

“I just wanted to see you,” Jonghyun replied, catching his breath from running up all the flights of stairs. Kibum sighed gently.

“You’ve just come from the gym, haven’t you? Go take a shower; some of your spare clothes are in my bottom drawer.”

The domesticity of the situation didn’t hit Jonghyun until he was in Kibum’s bedroom, rifling through his spare clothes. Kibum stood at the doorway with that same bemused smile on his face. “What movie were you watching?” Jonghyun asked.

“Oh, it’s just an old rom-com. Do you want to join me?” Kibum’s eyes then flickered from confusion to something darker, something unreadable, something that Jonghyun following closely behind and pressing Kibum into the sofa, whispering prayers into any exposed inch of skin he could see.

Kibum loved it most when Jonghyun would kiss along the inside of his arm, starting from the wrist and trailing butterflies up to his shoulder, it made him feel loved and adored all at once. He would sigh and praise Jonghyun as he kissed both arms before concentrating on his neck and exposed collarbones.

It was slow this time, as Kibum pulled Jonghyun’s sweater off of him delicately, Jonghyun complaining that Kibum should’ve just joined in the shower, saving him the unnecessary time of getting dressed. He shut up the moment Kibum disappeared beneath him to nip at tanned planes of skin, he smelled like frosted vanilla – Kibum’s shower gel.

Clothes were lost, one at a time. Kibum’s loose t-shirt (he had too many of these, Jonghyun decided), and then Jonghyun’s jeans, and then Kibum’s sweats, and then their underwear together. Kibum flipped their positions as Jonghyun held him, fingers grazing against firm muscle (from all the kneading dough no doubt) as they unravelled together like ribbon, falling to the floor in ropes of ungraceful lust.

Kibum landed on top of Jonghyun again as they rolled off together, laughing gently.

“I’ve never had sex on the sofa before,” Kibum teased, kissing Jonghyun’s shoulders.

“Not even with Minho?” It slipped out before Jonghyun could even stop it and he winced when Kibum froze and sat up, staring at Jonghyun square in the eye.

“How do you even know about that?” Kibum asked, running a hand through his unkempt hair.

“You told me,” Jonghyun explained, leaning up on his elbows. “On our second date. When you were drunk.”

Kibum reached up and snatched the knitted throw from the back of his sofa and wrapped it around himself, suddenly feeling over exposed, and traipsed around the living room, picking up articles of clothing that had been strewn around. The credits of the movie was reaching its end but Kibum wasn’t in the mood to switch it off, he’d let it run back to the DVD menu. The music playing mockingly as they dressed themselves quietly.

“We need to talk about this,” Kibum then said, taking a seat on his coffee table as Jonghyun sank into his plush sofa. “Minho and I… We were a silly mistake. A stupid decision I made when I was sixteen.”

“You said you went on dates with him.”

Kibum sucked in air through his teeth. “Yeah, we went on a lot of dates.”

“Did you ever…” Jonghyun prompted, looking up through his eyelashes. Kibum frowned for a second before exhaling, his entire body almost deflating to the floor.

“Yeah. Once.”

“Oh.” Was all Jonghyun could say, the euphoria he had been riding on suddenly burnt away and left nothing but anxiety and self-doubt.

“Please, don’t think about it anymore. I don’t,” Kibum said, trying to reassure Jonghyun.

“It doesn’t matter if you don’t. He does.”

“What do you mean?”

“Kibum, he’s still in love with you!”

Kibum blanched. _He knew_. “That shouldn’t matter. I don’t love him.”

Jonghyun got up from the sofa and began to pace around. “He’s everything I’m not. I can’t get you those extravagant tickets to musicals and I don’t understand art… I’m a boring accountant who gave up his only passion to make his daddy proud.”

“I don’t care about money,” Kibum scoffed. “You were a scared teenager, I don’t judge you for that.”

“Don’t you feel embarrassed? I’m shorter than you are.”

“Oh, my God, not this too. Jonghyun, I told you, I’m not like that anymore!”

“He loves you so much, Kibum,” Jonghyun reasoned, brushing off Kibum’s urgency.

Kibum was beyond perplexed. “What in the world kind of argument are we having right now?” He asked. “Are you trying to persuade me to dump you and date Minho? Is that what you’re doing right now?”

Jonghyun faltered in his step. _Was it_? “I don’t know,” he said softly.

“Jonghyun, Minho may be rich. He may be handsome. He may be the ideal guy for a lot of people. He may be a lot of things, but he’s not _you_. He puts me on this unrealistic pedestal that I can’t possibly achieve and you treat me like I’m a normal person.” Kibum left the coffee table and walked over to Jonghyun. He took his hands in his own and sighed. “I didn’t love him. I felt sorry for him. Believe me when I tell you this that I love no one else but you.”

“You could…”

“Could what?” Kibum challenged. “Leave you for him? That’ll never happen. He’s boring.”

“I’m boring.”

“No,” Kibum whispered. “You’re Jonghyun and I love you.”

“I love you too,” Jonghyun replied. He leant up and pressed a kiss to Kibum’s forehead. All his self-doubt couldn’t melt away that quickly, he needed time to repair the damage his own esteem had caused, but Kibum had done well to ease him.

Until a sudden and shrill ringtone pulled the two apart and Kibum walked over to his mobile, resting on the coffee table.

Kibum stared at the ID before shaking his head. “Minho, what the hell do you want?” Jonghyun’s blood ran cold and he could hear Minho’s response from where he stood, behind the sofa.

“Kibummie, help me… I…” He hiccupped on the other line.

“You idiot, are you drunk?” Kibum reprimanded. “Where are you? I’ll come get you.” He looked at Jonghyun, pleading for him to understand. Jonghyun really wanted to.

“Kibummie, no… Listen… I love you.”

“Minho, you’re drunk.”

“No, I still love you. I’ve always loved you. There’s only ever been you. Jonghyun he… He doesn’t get you the way I do.”

“I don’t care,” Kibum said, rolling his eyes in disgust.

“He’s great and all… I can be better…”

“I doubt it,” Kibum scoffed. “Where are you? I’m coming to get you and then I’m gonna kick your drunk ass.”

“Kibummie, why didn’t you pick me?”

Jonghyun crept around the apartment to grab his coat and phone and slipped away as Kibum turned his back, biting on his thumbnail.

“Minho, we’ll talk about this later,” Kibum said, the remainder of the phone conversation lost as the door slammed shut behind Jonghyun.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so, i've been gone a long time. and for that, i'm truly, deeply sorry. I won't mince words. I've been unwell, I had an awful sinus infection and then I went to RTX and then i caught another cold and now it's october.  
> and october for me is when my studies begin.  
> October is also when the retail rush happens for the start of Christmas.  
> As you can understand, I'll be busy.  
> I'll try and get this fic and Play My Heartbeat finished and then I'll be taking a very long hiatus. About 2-3 months long.
> 
> I apologise deeply for not updating for so long but I hope you can understand why I haven't had the time or energy to do so.
> 
> Thank you for your support.  
> Please leave a comment if you enjoyed this chapter and you can absolutely chastise me for leaving you in the dark for so long, I'll understand too.


	9. Chapter 9

“So, what happened after that?” Taemin asked, as he slammed his beer down on the counter and wiped his mouth. Jonghyun had invited him out on an impromptu drinking session to vent.

“I left,” Jonghyun replied. “I wasn’t going to stick around and let Kibum choose him over me.”

“You’re a genuine, bon-a-fide idiot. You know that, right?” Taemin said, slapping Jonghyun upside the head. When the elder gave a noise of protest, Taemin didn’t give him any chances. “You’re letting the best thing that could ever happen to you go over some stupid pissing contest. Don’t you feel angry at yourself?”

“Of course I do!” Jonghyun said, staring into his beer. He watched as the bubbles popped and wondered for a brief second if the alcohol could solve his problems – it certainly solved Minho’s. Maybe right now he and Kibum were-

“You’re being stupid again!” Taemin interrupted. When Jonghyun flashed him a confused look Taemin shook his head. “You said that out loud, dummy. Look, you’re my hyung and I respect you but this person you’re being right now is not the hyung I know. What happened to the giddy look-at-my-cheese-tart Jonghyun who fell in love with Kibum at first sight?”

Jonghyun knew, deep down, that Taemin was right. As he had been all along. “I still love him.”

“So, go tell him and learn to trust him and yourself. Look, I’m telling you this as your friend and if you tell my boyfriend I said this I will come to your house and destroy your record collection-“ Jonghyun squeaked. “Yeah, I’m serious. You’re hot. You’re crazy fucking hot, okay? Kibum clearly loves you for more than your body; why else would he have stuck around for this long? You could be a musician, you could be a superstar, especially with a face like yours. I won’t lie, when I first came to the office, I had an intense crush on you.”

“Thanks, Taemin.”

“I mean _intense_.”

“I get it, Taemin,” Jonghyun laughed, sipping his beer as Taemin waggled his eyebrows suggestively. “Maybe I was too rash.”

“Maybe? You _were_ too rash. Go to Kibum now and apologise.”

“But our drinks-“

“On me, hyung. Go sort out your damn love life, you deserve a happy ever after,” Taemin said, waving Jonghyun off. He patted the elder’s shoulder and watched with a proud smile as Jonghyun ejected the bar. 

Jonghyun caught the first night bus that ran in the direction of Kibum’s apartment and with jittery nerves he watched the buildings melt away until the familiar neighbourhood came into view. He jumped off the bus and ran to Kibum’s apartment block. He buzzed up and waited.

“Hello?”

“Kibum, it’s me, Jonghyun.”

“Jonghyun! It’s not a good time right now…”

“Why not?”

“Kibummie, who is that?” Came Minho’s voice through the intercom. Jonghyun froze still.

“It’s Jonghyun. I’m going outside for a bit. Don’t throw up on my sofa or so help me…”

A few moments later the front door opened and Kibum stepped out looking worse for wear. Jonghyun smiled gently and brushed away some strands of his hair. “You look exhausted.”

“Yeah, well, caring for a drunk best friend is hard work,” Kibum snorted. “But… You would know.”

“You’re not that bad of a drunk,” Jonghyun joked and Kibum cracked a minute smile. “I want to apologise to you. About how I reacted.”

“No,” Kibum sighed. “I should’ve told you. How could we have a stable relationship when this was clearly my baggage to bare.” He toed at the ground for a moment before looking at Jonghyun. “Most people don’t carry around their baggage in the form of their best friend.”

“You were friends first and it just didn’t work,” Jonghyun shrugged.

“I want you to know Jonghyun that sixteen year old me was an idiot and if I could go back in time I would stop myself from even entertaining the idea.”

“I understand.”

“I’m crazy about you and I should’ve been honest from the start, so I’m sorry. Let’s start over,” Kibum joked. “I’m Kim Kibum and I used to date my best friend but broke up with him after I discovered I’m just not attracted to frog people.”

Jonghyun laughed and Kibum extended a hand. Jonghyun took it and held it firmly. “I’m Kim Jonghyun and I have some crazy dad issues… among other things.”

“Nice to meet you Jonghyun, looks like we both have our own issues,” Kibum said.

“Seems so.”

They stood in the cold for a brief second, Kibum admiring the neighbourhood view as night began to fall and Jonghyun admired the way Kibum’s eyes reflected the street lights. “Just so you know,” Kibum then said, turning to face Jonghyun completely. “Minho isn’t going anywhere. He told me he’s going to back off from now on. He said he doesn’t know if he’ll ever be over me completely but he’s going to try and move on. I hope you can accept that.”

“Accepting it means I can be with you, so I accept it.”

Kibum whined. “This is why I love you. All of my other boyfriends just up and quit the moment Minho came into the picture. I’m sorry you felt the need to compare yourself to Minho all the time but understand this, the way I felt about you the moment I saw you was nothing I had experienced before. You’re so much more than you put yourself up to. I love you Jonghyun, and I mean that.”

“I love you too, Kibum, and I mean that too.”

Kibum smiled gently and pulled Jonghyun in for a long, sweet kiss. “I should go and make sure Minho hasn’t done something stupid. Are you busy tomorrow?”

Tomorrow was Sunday so… “No.”

“Good, come over and we can watch another movie.” Kibum winked as he walked back into his apartment. A shiver ran up Jonghyun’s spine as he turned back to grab another night bus, he could almost feel the thrum of anticipation thrill his nerves.

* * *

Jonghyun took an early gym session that morning, pumping himself up for his date later on that night. He had settled himself on the chest press, feeling that it was an arm day rather than a leg day. Immersed in the dance music blaring through the gym he didn’t hear Minho approach him until he cleared his throat.

“Oh!” Jonghyun cried, letting go of the bars. They fell back, the weights clanging noisily. “Minho…”

“Jonghyun, I want to apologise to you,” Minho said, scratching the back of his head. “Kibum told me you two had an argument last night over me and I’m sorry. I was jealous and in a way I wanted to intimidate you but the more Kibum talked about you, the more I realised he was really in love with you…”

“Minho, I-“

“No, let me finish. I really want to be friends with you, Jonghyun, that part is genuine but… right now I don’t think I can do it.”

“No, I understand,” Jonghyun said, reaching for his water bottle and taking long sips.

“I hope in the future you and I can become great friends.” Minho extended his hand out to Jonghyun as a token of friendship and Jonghyun took it. Minho then yanked him forward until his lips brushed over the shell of Jonghyun’s ear. “And I’m saying this as Kibum’s best friend and nothing else but if you hurt him I will make you sorry.”

Jonghyun swallowed thickly as Minho pulled back. “I-I-“

“But I know you won’t, so I guess we have nothing to worry about. Take care Jonghyun, see you later.” Minho then turned on his heel and disappeared and Jonghyun sank back against the seat. Minho was a true enigma.

“Sup Minho!” Taemin then called out, making his way over to Jonghyun.

“Oh, Taemin, hi,” Minho greeted, bowing slightly as he walked away.

“I suppose it’s not just him who’s a real mystery,” Jonghyun said as Taemin strolled up with a beaming smile.

“What are you talking about?” Taemin asked.

“Nothing. What brings you here? I thought Sundays were date days with Jinki?”

“They are,” Taemin said. “But, he’s busy this morning so I came here to pump myself up for tonight. I’m anticipating at least three rounds.”

“Taemin you are depraved,” Jonghyun choked as he began to start his reps on the chest press again.

“Oh, I’m the depraved one? I believe you have a similar set-up tonight with Kibum, don’t you?”

“Yeah, but I doubt we’ll be too busy to have sex.”

“Why, what will you be doing instead?” Taemin asked, furrowing his brows.

“Watching a movie.” Jonghyun watched as Taemin collapsed into a fit of laughter. He stopped his reps again and stared at Taemin incredulously. “What? What’s so funny?”

“Hyung,” Taemin wheezed. “Hyung, you’re so naïve.” Taemin clapped his hand on Jonghyun’s shoulder gently.

Jonghyun didn’t understand what Taemin meant by naïve until about halfway through the movie at Kibum’s. Kibum had been giving him flirty glances all evening but Jonghyun tried to ignore it and when he came to question it, Kibum pounced, mouth sealing Jonghyun’s and swallowing any further questions.

Jonghyun could still hear the movie play from the bedroom as he rolled off Kibum with a satiated grin. He didn’t know adults still played that game. He’d done the move trick a lot during high school but he assumed he had grown out of it in his twenties.

“Minho approached me at the gym today,” Jonghyun said.

“You really know how to pillow talk, don’t you,” Kibum teased. “What did he say?”

“He apologised.”

“I’m glad,” Kibum sighed. “He’s such an idiot but I trust him with my life.”

“He seems like a good guy, even if he needs to work on his biceps.” Jonghyun flexed his arms to prove his point and Kibum purred.

“Oh, I don’t know,” Kibum drawled. “I don’t think Minho could pull these guns off as well as you.”

“Oh?” Jonghyun grinned. “You think so?”

“I know so. You’re crazy sexy.”

“I don’t think you know how sexy you are, Kibum,” Jonghyun murmured, leaning across to kiss Kibum.

Jonghyun didn’t leave the apartment until 1am, after a few extra rounds. Wondering if he should gloat to Taemin that he managed to beat him out by one.

* * *

A few months passed by and everything was still going smoothly. Jonghyun still had those blips of self-doubt whenever Minho and Kibum interacted but Kibum always did his best to dissipate them with soft smiles and even softer whispers. Taemin and Jinki were still going as strong as ever, much to Kibum and Jonghyun’s surprise. Taemin’s bold personality and Jinki meekness seemed like a recipe for disaster but it seemed like they mellowed the other out whenever they were together.

“Hyung,” Taemin said, shoving a cup of coffee in his face. “Are we going to KiKi’s for lunch?”

“Yeah, but you’re paying this time,” Jonghyun replied.

“Wh-what!? How did this come to be?”

“Remember a few months ago when you made me buy you lunch? You still owe me, Taemin.”

“Alright, but don’t get anything expensive,” Taemin grouched as he walked away from Jonghyun’s desk.

Jonghyun stuck his tongue out at Taemin’s retreating back before returning back to his work. As soon as lunch rolled around the two made their way to their favourite bakery, dismayed at the long line.

“At least you’ll get a sandwich,” Taemin griped.

Jonghyun could only laugh.

When they finally reached inside, the sandwich fridge had been ransacked and all that remained were a few egg salads and one tuna mayonnaise with sweetcorn.

“Guess I’ll have tuna too,” Taemin said as he picked the sub up. Kibum ran the charge though, making small talk with Jonghyun.

“Are you going to the gym tonight?” He asked.

“I am. And then I’m off to yours right?”

“Are you bringing Roo?” Kibum asked again with twinkling eyes.

“I can do,” Jonghyun said with a smile.

Kibum read out the price and Taemin handed the money over, grouching all the while because Jinki was in the back and thus his fill of eye-candy couldn’t be fulfilled until they met up later. Kibum toasted Jonghyun’s tuna melt and handed it over Taemin.

“See you later!” Kibum called out as the two left the bakery with smiles on their faces.

“Oh, that’s gross,” Taemin said as he read the name on the back of Jonghyun’s sandwich.

“What?”

_Brown hair. Cute smile. Cuter butt._

“Taemin,” Jonghyun started, grinning stupidly. “I may have to marry him.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this is my last jongkey fic.
> 
> thank you for reading <3


End file.
